Cosmetic Dentistry Directory Blog

Thanks to the enormous benefits of computers in dentistry, there are many new procedures and techniques we can choose from. If you have any missing teeth, it would be important to fill the gap as soon as possible. When the gap is left for too long, the surrounding teeth start to drift out of position and into the gap because they have no tooth there to hold them in position.

Dental implants are a way to fill the tooth gap and also the gap in the bone left by the lost tooth root. Traditionally, implants are first positioned in the bone, but no tooth is attached until the bone has had several months to grow closely in around the implant and make it part of itself. This creates a sturdy and durable anchor for the new tooth.

Then in a second procedure, a small projection is attached to the top of the implant. It is partly beneath the gums and partly visible above them. After about two weeks for the gums to heal, there is a third procedure to attach the new tooth to the projection - called an abutment.

How Teeth in an Hour™ Works
Teeth in an Hour™ is much faster. Your cosmetic dentist will first use Computerized Tomography (CT scanning) to obtain clear and detailed images of your teeth, their roots, and the jawbone. They will be images from several perspectives for a comprehensive view of the area. This is done in a preliminary visit.

Then using 3-D imaging software, he or she will design and fine-tune your implant and its new tooth. The CT scans viewed and analyzed by the software provide very precise measurements so your dentist can go ahead and make your new tooth and its implant before you return for another visit.

When you come for that second visit, the implant and tooth can be placed permanently in about an hour. There is no waiting for the bone to heal or an abutment to be placed. It is all done in this one procedure and you will spend far less time in the dental chair. When you leave, you will have a pearly porcelain tooth permanently anchored where before you had two gaps.

If you would like to consult an experienced implant dentist in your area, please use the map below or the "Find a Dentist" navigation above.

It is simply impossible to accurately treat a medical problem without first properly diagnosing it. Temporomandibular joint disorder, commonly referred to as TMJ or TMD, is a frequently misdiagnosed medical (dental) condition because its symptoms are many, varied, and resemble the symptoms of so many other medical conditions. But TMD is a bad bite and can be correctly diagnosed by a neuromuscular dentist.

People who have TMD suffer a whole host of painful symptoms including:

• Severe headaches
• Jaw pain
• Facial pain
• Jaw stiffness
• Clicking, popping noises in the jaw
• Tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
• Neck/shoulder pain
• Locking of the jaw

Often times, people spend years trying to find a medical doctor to relieve their symptoms and "fix" them, but, in actuality, it is most often a neuromuscular dentist who correctly diagnoses this group of symptoms as temporomandibular joint disorder.

Neuromuscular dentistry focuses on correcting your bite. Using a TENS unit (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation), the TMD diagnosis itself corrects it temporarily, relieving pain immediately. This provides the goal for your treatment plan - to make that jaw position permanent and eliminate your symptoms.

Some other tools used in TMD diagnosis are:

• K7 Evaluation System -- one of the most significant tools used to locate the proper position of the jaw (within tenths of a millimeter). K7 technology utilizes sonography, electromyography, and jaw tracking to determine the jaw's current and optimal positions.
• Computed Tomography (CT scan) provides a detailed view of the bones in the joint and surrounding areas; it does not provide great detail of the soft tissues.
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) provides detail of the soft tissues connected to the jaw joint (muscles, nerves, blood vessels).
• Tomography is a type of x-ray that shows cross-sections of your jaw; these machines are typically found in neuromuscular dentists' offices.
• X-rays performed in the dentist's office can provide him/her with views of your jaw joint and the surrounding bones and teeth.

Once it is determined that you have TMD, a treatment plan will be discussed.

If you would like to learn more about TMD and how it is diagnosed, please contact a neuromuscular dentist in your area today; to learn more, please read our Questions About Neuromuscular Dentistry page today.