AFFORDABLE DENTAL SERVICES
Josephine Aguda DDS Dental Office offers a full array of dental services to help you maintain healthy teeth. You can read more on this page about specific services.
Professional dental cleanings (dental prophylaxis) are usually performed by Registered Dental Hygienists. Your cleaning appointment will include a dental exam and the following:
Removal of calculus (tartar): Calculus is hardened plaque that has been left on the tooth for some time and is now firmly attached to the tooth surface. Calculus forms above and below the gum line and can only be removed with special dental instruments.
Removal of plaque: Plaque is a sticky, almost invisible film that forms on the teeth. It is a growing colony of living bacteria, food debris, and saliva. The bacteria produce toxins (poisons) that inflame the gums. This inflammation is the start of periodontal disease!
Teeth polishing: Remove stain and plaque that is not otherwise removed during tooth brushing and scaling.
Dental bonding is a dental procedure in which a dentist applies a tooth-colored resin material (a durable plastic material) and hardens it with a special light. This ultimately “bonds” the material to the tooth and improves the overall appearance of teeth.[1] Tooth bonding techniques have various clinical applications including operative dentistry and preventive dentistry as well as esthetic and pediatric dentistry, prosthodontics, and orthodontics.
Cosmetic dentistry, is comprehensive oral care that combines art and science to optimally improve dental health, aesthetics and function.
Cosmetic dentistry treatments:
Today’s common cosmetic dental treatment options include:
Whitening, or “tooth bleaching”, is the most common cosmetic dental procedure. While many whitening options are now available, dentist-supervised treatments remain the recommended procedures for lightening discoloured teeth.
Enamel shaping removes parts of the contouring enamel to improve the appearance of the tooth. It may be used to correct a very small chip. The removed enamel is irreplaceable, and may sometimes expose dentin. It is also known as enameloplasty, odontoplasty, recontouring, reshaping, slenderizing and stripping.
Contouring also know as Tooth reshaping, is one of few instant treatments now available in cosmetic dentistry. Dental reshaping and contouring is a procedure to correct crooked teeth, chipped teeth, cracked teeth or even overlapping teeth in just one session. The dental contouring procedure can even be a substitute for braces under certain circumstances. It is also a procedure of subtle changes. A few millimeters of reduction and a few millimeters of tooth-colored laminate can create a beautiful smile when performed by a cosmetic dentist, with no discomfort to you. Tooth reshaping, or dental contouring, is commonly used to alter the length, shape or position of your teeth.
Bonding is a process in which an enamel-like dental composite material is applied to a tooth’s surface, sculpted into shape, hardened and then polished.
Dental Bridges are false teeth, known as a pontics, which are fused between two porcelain crowns to fill in the area left by a missing tooth. The two crowns holding it in place that are attached onto your teeth on each side of the false tooth. This is known as a fixed bridge. This procedure is used to replace one or more missing teeth. Fixed bridges cannot be taken out of your mouth as you might do with removable partial dentures. In areas of your mouth that are under less stress, such as your front teeth, a cantilever bridge may be used. Cantilever bridges are used when there are teeth on only one side of the open space. Bridges can reduce your risk of gum disease, help correct some bite issues and even improve your speech. Bridges require your commitment to serious oral hygiene, but will last as many ten years or more.
Veneers are ultra-thin, custom-made laminates that are bonded directly to the teeth. They are an option for closing gaps or disguising discolored teeth that do not respond well to whitening procedures.
Gum Lift is a cosmetic dental procedure that raises and sculpts the gum line. The procedure involves reshaping the tissue and/or underlying bones to create the appearance of longer or more symmetrical teeth.
A crown is a type of dental restoration which completely caps or encircles a tooth or dental implant and is typically bonded to the tooth using a dental cement. Crowns can be made from many materials, which are usually fabricated using indirect methods. Crowns are often used to improve the strength or appearance of teeth.
A bridge is fabricated by reducing the teeth on either side of the missing tooth or teeth by a preparation pattern determined by the location of the teeth and by the material from which the bridge is fabricated. In other words, the abutment teeth are reduced in size to accommodate the material to be used to restore the size and shape of the original teeth in a correct alignment and contact with the opposing teeth. The dimensions of the bridge are defined by Ante’s Law: “The root surface area of the abutment teeth has to equal or surpass that of the teeth being replaced with pontics”
Dentures are prosthetic devices constructed to replace missing teeth, and which are supported by surrounding soft and hard tissues of the oral cavity. Conventional dentures are removable, however there are many different denture designs, some which rely on bonding or clasping onto teeth or dental implants.
Cosmetic dentistry includes a variety of dental treatments aimed at improving the appearance of the teeth.
Bleaching is done to lighten teeth that are stained or discolored. It entails the use of a bleaching solution applied by a dentist or a gel in a tray that fits over the teeth used at home under a dentist’s supervision. Bonding involves applying tooth-colored plastic putty, called composite resin, to the surface of chipped or broken teeth. This resin is also used to fill cavities in front teeth (giving a more natural-looking result) and to fill gaps between teeth. Veneers are thin, porcelain shells that cover the front of the teeth. They can improve the appearance of damaged, discolored, misshapen, or misaligned teeth. Reshaping involves the removal of enamel from a misshapen tooth so that it matches other teeth. Orthodontics uses braces to correct the position of crowded or misaligned teeth. Implants are artificial teeth which are attached directly to the jaw to replace missing teeth.
We will work with an implant specialist to create an implant for a missing single tooth, missing multiple teeth, or replace a removable appliance.
In dentistry, a veneer is a thin layer of restorative material placed over a tooth surface, either to improve the aesthetics of a tooth, or to protect a damaged tooth surface. There are two main types of material used to fabricate a veneer, composite and dental porcelain. A composite veneer may be directly placed (built-up in the mouth), or indirectly fabricated by a dental technician in a dental laboratory, and later bonded to the tooth, typically using a resin cement such as Panavia. In contrast, a porcelain veneer may only be indirectly fabricated.
Our state-of-the-art, in-office Power Bleaching system will make your teeth whiter in less than 1.5 hours. Another option is our home bleaching system you take with you for results in 2 weeks. You can also consider a combination program of both systems for optimal, long-term results. Tooth whitening (or bleaching) is a simple, non-invasive dental treatment used to change the color of natural tooth enamel and is an ideal way to enhance the beauty of your smile.
Dental braces (also known as orthodontic braces, or simply braces) are a device used in orthodontics to align teeth and their position with regard to a person’s bite. They are often used to correct malocclusions such as underbites, overbites, cross bite and open bites, or crooked teeth and various other flaws of teeth and jaws, whether cosmetic or structural. Orthodontic braces are often used in conjunction with other orthodontic appliances to widen the palate or jaws or otherwise shape the teeth and jaws. While they are mainly used on children and teenagers, adults can also use them.
Invisalign is a series of clear, removable teeth aligners that both orthodontists and dentists use as an alternative to traditional metal dental braces.The most obvious advantage of the treatment is cosmetic: the aligners are completely transparent, therefore far more difficult to detect than traditional wire and bracket braces. This makes the method particularly popular among adults who want to straighten their teeth without the look of traditional metal braces, which are commonly worn by children and adolescents. In addition, the aligners are marketed as being more comfortable than braces.[3] Due to the removable nature of the device, food can be consumed without the encumbrance of metallic braces.
Dental sealants are thin plastic coatings applied to the chewing surfaces of back teeth. While fluoride has played a large role in decreasing smooth surface decay, fluoride has its least preventive effect on the deep grooves, called pits and fissures, of the back teeth.
We perform root canals on anterior, molar, and premolar teeth. A root canal is the space within the root of a tooth. It is part of a naturally occurring space within a tooth that consists of the pulp chamber (within the coronal part of the tooth), the main canal(s), and more intricate anatomical branches that may connect the root canals to each other or to the surface of the root.
A dental extraction (also referred to as exodontia) is the removal of a tooth from the mouth. Extractions are performed for a wide variety of reasons, including tooth decay that has destroyed enough tooth structure to prevent restoration. Extractions of impacted or problematic wisdom teeth are routinely performed, as are extractions of some permanent teeth to make space for orthodontic treatment.
You should have a standard cleaning at least twice a year. A periodontal treatment includes an Adult Prophy (basic cleaning). If it has been over a year since your last cleaning, possible treatment will include either Periodontal Scaling (deeper) or Root Planning and Scaling (requires anesthetic).
The treatment of periodontal disease begins with the removal of sub-gingival calculus (tartar). This is commonly addressed by the surgical procedures known as root planing and scaling. These procedures debride calculus by mechanically scraping it from tooth surfaces.
Dental calculus, commonly known as tartar, is comprised almost entirely of calcium phosphate salt, the ionic derivative of calcium phosphate (the primary composition of teeth and bone). As an ion, calculus has lost two electrons and is electrically unstable. Clinically, calculus stuck to teeth appears to be hardened to the point requiring mechanical scraping for removal – it is, however, highly susceptible to micro-dissolving compositions that adhere additionally elections to its matrix and subsequently release calculus components from their electrostatic bonds.
One such product is Periogen, which employs Tetrapotasium Polyphosphate and Sodium Tripolyphosphate in the presence of Sodium Fluoride, which dissolves dental calculus in several weeks of home use.
Pediatric dentists receive special training in easing a child’s fears about dental visits. They work hard to assure a child’s comfort during dental procedures by providing a kid-friendly environment. A dentist usually begins by explaining how dental instruments will be used. The dentist then tells the child what procedures will be performed and how they will be performed. The dentist answers any questions the child might have. Body language is used to assure a child. Offering big, warm smiles and talking to the child in a slow, gentle voice can have a calming effect. A good dentist can handle frightened, uncooperative children in a patient and friendly manner.
Whether you are an athlete or casual sports participant, you should wear a mouth guard to protect your teeth. If you grind your teeth while you sleep, a bite guard will help reduce symptoms of TMJ. We custom make mouth guards in both soft and hard materials.
INITIAL ORAL EXAMINATION
Your initial oral examination includes a visual examination, charting, periodontal probing, diagnosis and treatment recommendations. We will also take x-rays which includes the proper diagnosis of the anterior (front) and posterior (back) teeth as well as the bite-wing x-ray series for proper diagnosis of proximal decay of posterior teeth.
