May 1, 2023

What is Tooth Space Maintainer and How to Keep It in Your Smile?

What Is a Space Maintainer?

​A space maintainer in Frisco, TX, is a dental appliance that holds space in a child’s mouth when they lose a baby tooth prematurely. Ideally, when a baby tooth falls out earlier than expected due to trauma, decay, or other reasons, it can cause the teeth on either side of the gap to drift into the space. It can make it difficult for the permanent tooth to come in properly when it is time. A space maintainer helps prevent this by keeping the adjacent teeth from shifting and holding the space open until the permanent tooth can erupt. A space maintainer device can be permanent or removable, usually featuring metal or plastic. The dentist in Frisco will determine whether a space maintainer is necessary for your smile based on your unique needs.

Which Teeth Need Space Maintainer?

​Space maintainers are typically for treating children’s teeth. The baby teeth that often require space maintainers include:

1. Primary molars – are the back teeth, typically lost around age 10-12.
2. Premolars – come after the primary molars and serve as placeholders for permanent teeth. Premature loss of these teeth can cause problems with the alignment of the permanent teeth.
3. Canine teeth – are the pointed teeth next to the front incisors.

Benefits of Wearing a Space Maintainer

Some of the key benefits of wearing a space maintainer for children are:

1. Prevents teeth from shifting: After losing a primary tooth, the surrounding teeth may shift or drift into the space left by the missing tooth. The consequence can be crowding, misalignment, or other dental problems. A space maintainer holds the space open and prevents the remaining teeth from shifting, helping to maintain proper dental alignment.
2. Promotes proper eruption of permanent teeth: A space maintainer will hold space for a permanent tooth that has not yet erupted properly. It guides the tooth into its proper position and prevents impaction or other complications.
3. Reduces the need for orthodontic treatment: A space maintainer can reduce the need for more extensive orthodontic treatment later in life by preventing teeth from shifting and promoting proper tooth eruption. It will save you time and money in the long run.
4. Preserves dental health: It is more difficult to maintain proper dental hygiene when you have crowded teeth. Further, it can lead to problems such as cavities or gum disease. By preventing teeth from shifting, a space maintainer preserves dental health and prevents these problems from occurring.

When Is the Right Time to Get Space Maintainers?

If you ask any dentist at Regina Y Powe DDS, their response will be the same about wearing space maintainers. We recommend placing a space maintainer soon after a primary tooth is lost to avoid complications such as crowding or misalignment of permanent teeth. However, we also acknowledge that the Ideal time to get a space maintainer depends on the individual case and the stage of dental development. Therefore, we must first evaluate your child’s teeth and determine if and when a space maintainer is necessary and when it should be placed. In general, if you lose a primary tooth before age 6 or 7, a space maintainer is necessary immediately to prevent future dental problems.

When Should Space Maintainer Be Removed?

​The timing for removing a space maintainer is different for each case. Usually, Pediatric dentists and orthodontists remove a space maintainer when it is no longer necessary to save space in the jawbone for a permanent tooth to erupt properly. Ideally, once the corresponding permanent tooth has erupted and is in its proper position, you can remove the space maintainer. Although it is typically between the ages of 10-13 for most children, the timing of eruption for each tooth will cause variations in how soon your child can get rid of the space maintainer in their mouth.

Contact Regina Y Powe DDS to Know More

You must seek dental care promptly if your child loses a primary tooth to get a clear answer regarding the best timing for space maintainers. Besides, delaying treatment can lead to more serious problems down the line. A dentist near you is on standby to advise you on the best course of action for your child’s situation when you book your appointment now.

April 1, 2023

What Are the Myths and Facts About Sleep Apnea Treatment?

Dentists are concerned it’s more than just the teeth. Sleep apnea is an example of a medical condition related to your mode that your dental professional can help you with. Sleep apnea is a phrase used to refer to breathing and sleeping issues without precision. Some of the myths and facts you should know about sleep apnea include the following:

Myths

Some of the myths include:

It’s just Snoring

These are the relationship between sleep apnea and snoring. Snoring is only a symptom of sleep apnea, but it’s not sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a disorder that causes one to stop breathing throughout the night. Snoring sometimes happens to inform of snort, not when one gasps and begins breathing again.

It’s not a Big Deal

When you stop breathing as you sleep is potentially very serious. Even if you don’t wake up completely, all the breathing interruptions affect the quality of your sleep and contribute to fatigue and even risks of strokes and heart attack.

Sleep Apnea is a Concern for Seniors

Although sleep apnea is most common in people 40 years of age and older, it also affects people of any age.

Facts

Some of the facts include the following:

Your Airway Becomes Blocked

The type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea, which occurs when your tonsils, tongue or other tissues physically block your airway. The blockage prevents the flow of air physically as you breathe.

Weight Loss and Quitting Smoke Helps

Even a tiny amount of weight loss helps resolve some sleep apnea symptoms. So too, can stop smoking. If you’re overweight or smoke and have sleep apnea symptoms, you should ask our staff at Regina Y Powe DDS for recommendations about quitting smoking and losing weight.

Wearing a Mouthpiece can Help

A sleep doctor near you can help you to avoid the severe consequences of sleep apnea by providing a customized mouthpiece. The mouthpiece heads place your lower jaw and tongue in the right position to help prevent your airway from closing as you sleep.

Can Sleep Apnea get Better Without Treatment?

In some cases, sleep apnea resolves if you return to a healthy weight, but it might reoccur if you regain it. You should exercise regularly to help ease sleep apnea symptoms, even without weight loss. Also, try to get 30 minutes of moderate activity, such as brisk walking, on most days of the week.

Can Sleep Apnea be Fixed Naturally

The answer is yes, it can. Maintaining a healthy weight keeps your airways clear and reduces sleep apnea symptoms. Modest weight reduction in obese people helps eliminate the need for upper airway surgery.

Symptoms of Sleep Apnea

The most common signs and symptoms of both include:

• Experiencing morning headache
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Difficulty staying asleep or falling asleep
• Gasping for air during sleep
• Having episodes in which you stop breathing when you’re asleep. Another person would report this

Diagnosis of Sleep Apnea

When being diagnosed with sleep-disordered breathing in Frisco, TX, your doctor will evaluate your symptoms and sleep history, which you can share with the help of a person you share a bed or household with if possible.

The doctor will help you determine your need for further evaluation. The evaluation involves the doctor monitoring your overnight breathing and other body functions during sleep at our clinic.

Home sleep testing might also apply. Your doctor will provide you with simplified tests you’ll use at home to diagnose sleep apnea. These tests measure your airflow, blood oxygen level, breathing patterns, and heart rate.

If you get abnormal results, your doctor will prescribe a therapy without further testing. However, if you have obstructive sleep apnea, the doctor might refer you to a throat, ear, or nose doctor to evaluate your blockage in the throat and nose. Also, a neurologist or a heart doctor evaluation might be necessary to check for cases of central sleep apnea.

Treatment

If you have milder cases of sleep apnea, your doctor may recommend you change your lifestyle by quitting smoking and losing weight. In case of nasal allergies, your doctor may recommend treatment for the allergies.

Other treatment options are available if these measures don’t help improve your signs and symptoms or if your sleep apnea is severe.

Specific devices help open up a blocked airway. Also, surgery might be necessary in other cases.

March 1, 2023

Activities Best Avoided after Root Canal Treatment

If you are prepared for the tooth-preserving treatment of a root canal from the dentist near me, expect their staff to provide information on what to expect. They will provide all information about the process and your recovery. Typically your mouth and gums will feel entirely normal after undergoing a root canal, but you can expect relief from the pain and swelling you had in your tooth and mouth for a week or two after the procedure. You can do several things after receiving dental root canal treatment to ensure you recover quickly and smoothly. However, some things are best avoided until you recover from the procedure and restore your tooth with a dental crown. This article focuses on the things best avoided to make your recovery comfortable and smooth.

Should I Avoid Exercise after a Root Canal?

You may feel like exercising after getting relief from the toothache and lingering sensitivity you experienced from your infected tooth. However, you must realize you have undergone a painful therapy, and trying to exercise or lifting heavy objects can cause a rush of blood to your head to increase bleeding in the treated tooth. Therefore it is best that you avoid exercising for at least 72 hours to prevent unnecessary complications.

Refrain from Eating Immediately After Your Procedure

Your mouth remains numb from the anesthesia given by the dentist for four to six hours after the dentist completes the root canal. Therefore you must refrain from eating until the anesthesia has worn off to eliminate the risk of biting your tongue and soft tissue or burning your throat. Even after the numbness has disappeared, you must ensure you don’t chew or bite with the treated tooth until any existing tenderness has disappeared. You must also avoid scalding foods and beverages, preferring lukewarm versions for a couple of days.

Refrain from Smoking or Consuming Alcohol

After undergoing painful therapy, the last thing you should think about is smoking or having a drink in celebration of the relief you achieved from the treatment. Tobacco can result in infections in your mouth, and alcohol interacts with the medications you receive to alleviate pain to cause complications. You must also avoid using mouthwash brands with alcohol because they can create similar problems to alcohol.

Do You Need Bed Rest after a Root Canal?

Root canals don’t require you to remain bedridden because you can move around even during the first 48 hours after the process. However, you must avoid playing sports, running, hiking, or indulging in physical labor to ensure you don’t exert yourself. If you take time to rest and relax, you will find it easier to recover quickly and prepare to restore your tooth as the dentist nearby suggested with a dental crown.

Leave the Treated Tooth Alone

You may be tempted to probe around the treated tooth with your tongue or fingers. Although it is normal might experience sensitivity and soreness in your acts. Therefore you must remain determined to leave the treated tooth isolated without probing it with any objects, including those mentioned above.

Keep Your Head Elevated

After a root canal, swelling and soreness around your mouth are expected. However, you can help alleviate the swelling by using extra pillows to elevate your head when lying down for a few nights after your treatment.

Do Not Avoid Medications

The dentist nearby offers the best dental care in Frisco, TX, and prescribes or suggests painkillers to alleviate discomfort from the procedure. Take the medications as indicated without skipping doses, especially with antibiotics, because they help prevent infections. Contact the dentist if you experience severe pain or discomfort after a root canal with symptoms of fever and nausea. While the tips mentioned above help with quick recovery, your dentist is the best professional to help you if you confront unexpected symptoms or complications. After you recover from root canal therapy, you must restore the treated tooth with a dental crown needing a further two visits to your regular dentist for tooth preparation and placement of a customized crown over the tooth in a couple of weeks. Do not try to avoid getting the dental crown because root canal therapy renders your tooth weak, making it prone to fractures and breakage. Instead, get the restoration as soon as possible after your recovery to allow the treated tooth to function as your remaining teeth for many years. Root canal treatment in Frisco, performed by Regina Y Powe, DDS, has a success rate of over 95 percent, confirming you will receive relief from the excruciating tooth you experienced before the therapy. Consult them for your root canal and receive help to preserve your natural tooth from extraction from the infection in your tooth.

February 1, 2023

Certain Factors That Can Increase the Risk for Gum Disease

Gum disease is a severe infection of the gums that can damage the soft tissue and, without treatment, destroys the bone supporting the teeth. Periodontitis also causes teeth to loosen and result in tooth loss. Periodontitis is a common infection affecting many but is largely preventable. If you develop periodontitis, your chances of successful treatment for the condition improve significantly and reduce your chances of developing it again.

What Are the Main Causes of Gum Disease?

The primary cause of gum disease is generally poor oral hygiene. Brushing twice daily, flossing once, and getting six-monthly dental checkups significantly prevent your chances of developing this condition. The causes of gum disease besides the above include:

• Plaque Formation on Your Teeth: When your mouth bacteria interact with sugars and starches in your food, it results in plaque formation on your teeth. Brushing your teeth twice per day and flossing once helps remove plaque which forms quickly again on your teeth.
• Plaque Hardening into Tartar: If plaque remains on your teeth without dental care in Frisco, TX, it hardens into tartar. Tartar is challenging to remove by brushing and needs professional help. In addition, plaque and tartar can cause considerable damage the longer they remain on your teeth. Unless you get a professional cleaning from the Frisco dentist, you will find getting rid of plaque and tartar challenging.
• Plaque Causes Gingivitis: the mildest version of gum disease is gingivitis which irritates and inflames part of your gum tissue around your tooth’s base. Gingivitis is best reversed with professional treatment and excellent home care.
• Ongoing Gum Inflammation Results in Periodontitis: Ongoing gum inflammation eventually causes pockets between your teeth and gums, filling them with plaque, bacteria, and tartar. With time the pockets deepen and fill with more bacteria. If left untreated, this deep infection causes bone and tissue loss making you lose one or more teeth, besides putting a strain on your immune system.

Risk Factors of Severe Gum Disease

Some factors that increase your risk of severe gum disease periodontitis include the following: Poor oral health habits with smoking or chewing tobacco can result in gingivitis, besides hormonal changes associated with pregnancy or menopause. Recreational use of drugs like smoking marijuana or vaping is also a reason for this problem besides obesity, genetics, and certain medications that result in xerostomia or dry mouth, or gum changes. In addition, inadequate nutrition, including vitamin C deficiency and systemic diseases like diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and Crohn’s disease, besides conditions resulting in decreased immunity from conditions like leukemia, HIV/AIDS, and cancer treatment, can also cause severe gum disease.

What Are the Most Common Gum Diseases?

The most common gum diseases include gingivitis causing inflammation of the gums, resulting in bleeding when brushing and flossing your teeth. In addition, you might notice discoloration on your teeth from plaque buildup. The buildup occurs if you don’t brush and floss or get dental cleanings at six-monthly intervals. When you don’t receive professional attention for gingivitis, the infection progresses to early periodontal disease when your gums start causing small pockets to form between your teeth and gums. The pockets contain harmful bacteria, and as your immune system starts fighting the infection, your gum tissue starts to recede. Bleeding during brushing, flossing, and bone loss are familiar symptoms of early periodontal disease. If early periodontal disease is left untreated, it progresses to moderate periodontal disease, causing you to experience pain and bleeding around your teeth besides gum recession. In addition, your teeth start losing support to loosen, and the infection results in an inflammatory response throughout your body. If you ignore moderate periodontal disease without seeking gum disease treatment in Frisco, TX, the condition progresses to advanced periodontal disease when the connective tissue holding your teeth starts to deteriorate. Destruction of the gums, bones and other tissues supporting your teeth also occurs. As a result, you will likely experience severe pain when chewing, halitosis, and an awful taste in your mouth, and start losing teeth.

What Is a Severe Gum Disease?

Advanced periodontal disease is the most severe of the four versions of gum disease because no dental treatment for periodontal disease of the aggressive kind is yet developed. Therefore you must rely on excellent dental hygiene practices, professional cleanings, and antibiotics besides regular follow-up appointments after every few weeks before returning to quarterly or six monthly meetings with the Frisco dentist to manage this severe infection. You may also require surgery if the inflammation persists in areas of your mouth, making them inaccessible to brushing and flossing. Gum disease is preventable in the early stages when it can be reversed by getting regular dental checkups. However, you will need frequent dental exams and cleanings if you allow the condition to progress to advanced periodontitis, which can be treated but cannot be cured. Therefore the better option is to maintain dental hygiene appropriately and schedule regular visits to the Frisco dentist for exams and cleanings. If you notice your teeth and gums bleeding when brushing and flossing, kindly do not waste time but visit Regina Y Powe, DDS, for exams and cleanings because you may have gum disease best prevented in the early stages. A consultation with the dentist will help you avoid a severe infection without a cure from affecting you.