Rebuilding and Restoring Your Smile
Past accidents, active decay, and unexpected tooth loss can make it difficult to eat, speak, or even smile. Our Chandler dentist is here to help you restore your smile back to its full health… or even better.
As a SPEAR-trained dentist, Dr. Carlos Lopez is especially interested in finding out the underlying causes and factors contributing to dental problems. It could be a specific medical condition, past illnesses, or even certain habits. This information allows him to help his patients enhance their dental health and prevent additional problems in the future.
Repairing Areas of Tooth Decay
Cavities are typically associated with a lapse in flossing or even dietary choices. Symptoms can include things like:
- Sensitivity
- Problems with food sticking between teeth
- Pain
- Sharp or rough areas
- The area feeling a bit “off”
Depending on the extent of the damage, a small white filling can be used to seal off the area and rebuild the tooth. Unfortunately, larger cavities cannot always be filled, as everyday use could cause the restoration or tooth to break off. In these cases, we would recommend a full coverage crown. Crowns are also used to protect teeth that have recently been restored with a root canal.
Same Day Treatments
One of the crown options that we provide is CEREC same day crowns. CEREC crowns are extremely durable, with studies showing that Cad Cam ceramics are the 2nd longest lasting restoration behind gold.
Dr. Lopez recommends same-day crowns in most cases due to their numerous benefits, such as:
- Less sensitivity
- Ability to prep the tooth and place the permanent crown in one day
- Highly accurate digital impressions
- Greater convenience toward the patient’s schedule
- No room for human error
In cases where a same-day crown is not appropriate, we work with a local lab and ceramist to design custom crowns. Their attention to internal characterizations of the tooth’s shading and surfaces provide maximum aesthetic benefits.
Replacing Missing Teeth
An open space in your smile can cause both cosmetic concerns as well as functional challenges. Just one missing tooth can lead to other teeth in the mouth shifting out of place. It’s best to replace your missing tooth as soon as possible.
Dr. Lopez offers several types of options, depending on the extent of your tooth loss:
Fixed Bridges: Can be supported by adjacent healthy teeth, or on dental implants. They use two functional crowns, with a false crown suspended between them to fill in the open space.
All-on-4 and Implant Supported Dentures: Teeth in a day treatments allow you to replace all of your teeth at one time, using a denture that is permanently retained by as few as four dental implants. Implants can also be used to stabilize removable dentures.
Removable Dentures: Full and partial dentures offer an economical solution for replacing missing teeth. Each one is customized to the unique needs of your smile.
Find out which option is best for your oral health. Call Riggs Family Dental in Chandler today! Ask about our $79 new patient special. Se habla español.
