Our practice can provide a wide range of dental services, typically every type of dental service. We strive to give you the best diagnosis and treatment options along with our recommendations. Our emphasis is on total preventive care for our patients. Total care begins with regular hygiene visits, regular checkups and continued home oral health routines. To achieve the best results, we are very selective in the specialists we may refer you to if you need interdisciplinary (combined) treatment.

Our practice also provides the highest-quality services for restoring mouths that have been damaged by dental disease, injury and common problems that require cosmetic dentistry. Our primary goal for our patients is to achieve and maintain optimum oral health through advances in techniques, technologies and by maintaining their scheduled dental exams.

 

DIAGNOdent
Dr. Palliser now offers a unique service that can detect caries at the earliest stage. The DIAGNOdent Laser Caries Detector is over 90 percent accurate in detecting even the smallest lesions that don’t even appear on X-rays! Early detection enables us to better preserve and protect your teeth. Click here for more information on this safe and painless service.

 

Crowns and Bridges

Crowns
A crown is a permanent covering that fits over an original tooth that is decayed, damaged or cracked. Crowns are made of a variety of different materials such as porcelain, gold, acrylic resin or a mix of these materials. Porcelain generally has the most natural appearance and can usually be custom stained in our office. Our office can also take digital photos to send to the laboratory when fabricating your crown in order to achieve the best results.

The treatment plan for a patient receiving a crown involves:

  • Numbing the tooth to remove the decay in or around it.
  • Re-sculpturing the tooth to provide an ideal fit for the crown.
  • Making an impression of your teeth in order to create a custom-made crown.
  • Making a temporary crown out of acrylic resin and fitting it onto the tooth during the interim period when the permanent custom-made crown is being created.
  • Applying the permanent crown (when received from the lab) by removing the temporary crown and fitting the permanent one onto the tooth.
  • After ensuring that the crown has the proper look and fit, the dentist cements it into place.
  • This process generally consists of a minimum of 2-3 visits over a two to four week period.

Once the procedure is completed, proper dental hygiene, including daily brushing and flossing, is required to maintain healthy, bacteria-free teeth, gums and crowns. This helps in the prevention of gum disease. Given proper care, your crowns can last a lifetime.

Bridges
A bridge is a dental device that fills a space previously occupied by a tooth. A bridge may be necessary to prevent:

  • Shifting of the teeth that can lead to bite problems (occlusion) and/or jaw problems and resultant periodontal (gum) disease.
  • Supraeruption of the opposing tooth
  • Bridges safeguard the integrity of existing teeth and help maintain a healthy, vibrant smile.

There are two main types of bridges:

  • Fixed bridge- this is the most popular and consists of a filler tooth that is attached to two crowns, which fit over the existing teeth and hold the bridge in place.
  • The Maryland Bridge (resin bonded) is often used when you do not want to entirely cover the teeth on both sides of the missing tooth. It is cemented (bonded) to the back of the adjacent teeth. This bridge is typically placed when the tooth to be replaced is in an area that does not have a lot of chewing forces placed on it.

 The treatment plan for a bridge usually requires 2-3 trips to our office. Specifically, it involves:

  • Numbing the surrounding teeth with a local anesthetic and cleaning plaque or decay.
  • Reducing the teeth so that the crowns can be fitted.
  • Making a mold or impression of the teeth in order to create a customized permanent impression (this generally takes 2-4 weeks).
  • Fitting the patient with a temporary bridge until the permanent bridge is ready for placement.
  • Removing the temporary bridge and replacing it with the permanent one.
  • Adjusting the bridge for the proper bite and fit and cementing it into the mouth.

 

Implants
Modern dental implants are artificial tooth replacements that were first developed half a century ago by a Swedish scientist named Per-Ingvar Branemark. Implants arose from the patient’s need to secure loose-fitting dentures. Since the advent of the implant, engineering and enhancements to the implant have enabled dentists to expand the implant’s usefulness, including the replacement of missing or lost teeth.

Types of Implants

There are three main types of implants:

  • The root implant
  • The plate form implant
  • The subperiosteal implant

The root (single) implant—by far, the most popular—is the most effective because it mirrors the size and shape of a patient’s natural tooth. This implant is often as strong as the patient’s original tooth and does not involve altering the adjacent teeth. The implant or artificial root is placed into the bone under local anesthesia by a dental specialist, then allowed to heal and integrate with the bone. Once the healing process is completed and the bone is attached to the implant, the patient returns to our dental office where the implant is fitted with the new tooth. This process generally takes anywhere from three to eight months.

The plate form implant is ideal in situations where the jawbone is not wide enough to properly support a root implant. The plate form implant is long and thin, unlike the root implant, and anchors into thin jawbones. It is inserted the same way as a root implant. In certain cases, the plate form implant is immediately fitted with the restoration without waiting for the healing process to run its course.

The subperiosteal implant is used when the jawbone has receded to the point where it can no longer support a permanent implant.

Implant as a Treatment Option
For missing teeth or if the missing tooth space has no surrounding teeth; the dentist may decide an implant is the most appropriate treatment choice or option. With proper care and maintenance, dental implants can last a life-time. Not everyone is an implant candidate, so a proper periodontal and bone screening is important to decide if implants are right for you.

Post Implant Care
Although proper oral hygiene is always recommended for maintaining good dental health, it is especially important when a patient has received a dental implant. Bacteria can attack sensitive areas in the mouth when teeth and gums are not properly cleaned, thus causing gums to swell and jaw bones to gradually recede. Recession of the jawbone will weaken implants and eventually make it necessary for the implant to be removed. Patients are advised to visit our office at least twice a year to ensure the health of their teeth and implants. Dental implants can last for decades when given proper care.

Fillings
The concept of a “filling” is replacing and restoring your tooth structure that was damaged due to decay or fractures. Our practice takes pride in discussing the various types of filling materials for you to select. Esthetics and dental health are primary goals for our patients. Durability and costs are also factors used to decide what treatment is best for you.

  •  Composite (tooth-colored plastic) resins usually are made of glass and resin that are used both as fillings and to repair defects in teeth by bonding to the tooth. There are various shades used that make it difficult to distinguish from natural teeth. They are mostly used in front teeth where esthetics is paramount. Composite fillings are also used in posterior teeth, but durability depends on the size of the restoration (cavity size). They typically wear out sooner than metal or porcelain fillings.
  • Amalgam (silver) fillings are still the most commonly used dental restorative materials globally for posterior (back) teeth. This material has been used for over 100 years. It can withstand chewing forces and usually lasts longer than a composite filling, with less cost.
  • Cast gold restorations have served the public for over 100 years with outstanding results and predictability. These fillings are made like crowns involving two appointments. They withstand chewing forces and do not corrode. They give superior longevity compared to composite or amalgam fillings. We have seen several gold fillings that were placed 40 years prior in “mint condition”.
  •   Porcelain (ceramic) fillings are restorations that give great esthetics and are more resistant to staining compared to composite fillings. They are used where esthetics and wear resistance are important. They can be abrasive on opposing tooth structures, especially when grinding and/or clenching habits are involved.

Constant pressures from chewing, clenching and/or grinding can cause dental fillings to wear away, crack or chip. Although you may not be able to tell that your filling is wearing down, we can show you with x-rays and/or our intra-oral cameras some of the weaknesses your restoration may have during a regular check-up.

Root Canal
A root canal is a procedure that extracts decayed pulp from the central part of the tooth, reshapes the canal and replaces it with strengthening filler.

A cavity is the result of superficial decay of the enamel of the tooth. Left long enough, this decay can burrow into the deeper reaches of the tooth, causing extensive damage to tooth structure. When the damage goes beyond what can be treated with a filling, dentists can perform a root canal (or endodontics), preserving the tooth and retaining its original integrity; thereby, saving a tooth that in the past would have to have been pulled.

Procedure:

  • The patient undergoes anesthesia.
  • A dental dam is used to isolate the tooth.
  • The tooth is opened to allow for removal of infected or dead dental pulp.
  • The tooth is comprehensively cleaned, including any cracks and canals.
  • With special tools, the doctor reshapes the canals.
  • The tooth is filled again with cutting edge biocompatible filling material.
  • A temporary covering is used to cover the access opening.
  • Patients MUST see their regular dentist quickly for a permanent restoration of the tooth.


You don't have to be ashamed of your smile anymore. We can provide the results you are looking for at an affordable price. We understand our patient's needs and will make every possible attempt to accommodate your schedule, concerns and financial needs.


Don't just smile in your dreams, make it a reality!