Cavities are produced by harmful bacteria that live in our mouth. Eating food, especially food that has a lot of sugar, feeds this bacteria. By feeding this bacteria, they start to produce acid, this acid, will eventually eat away at your tooth. By brushing and flossing you remove this bacteria build up, called plaque. If you aren’t removing this build up, the bacteria keep destroying the tooth and eating away at it, until there is a hole. Known to most as a cavity, tooth decay, or dental caries. Since our body doesn’t naturally heal the cavity hole, dentists have found a way to keep the cavity from progressing. Dentists remove the bacteria from the hole and fill the hole with a hard filling. The most common forms of fillings are the composite …show more content…
The first instrument that the dentist may use is a rubber dam. This is a piece of rubber that goes over the entire mouth and teeth, acting as a “raincoat” for the mouth. Dentists punch a hole in the rubber fabric and put it over the tooth that they are working on. Using this, keeps the rest of the mouth dry, and makes a barrier between the patient and the dental procedure. Dentists may use another tool called a bite block. This is a rubber block that is placed between the upper and lower teeth, used to keep the jaw open. This makes it easier for patients that are in a long procedure. It also prevents the patient from closing their mouth during the procedure, allowing the dentist to work without any …show more content…
To fill a cavity with amalgam, the dentist will mix up it up in a machine that rotates it very fast. Doing this, breaks the mercury up as it is in a pouch, and spreads it with the other metals. Once the amalgam is in your tooth, the dentist will push it down until there is no empty spaces in the tooth. Filling a tooth decay with a composite filling is a little bit different. To do this, the dentist will put acid on the tooth, which will create tiny holes in the tooth to allow the composite resin to bond onto the tooth. After rinsing it off, a small amount of priming and bonding will be applied to form a strong bond between the filling and tooth. Once the filling is in your mouth, the dentist will use a blue light, to harden the filling, known as curing the composite. After leveling the filling and making shaping the filling to the tooth, the process is
Dentists have been around as long as man can remember. Early dentist were often the doctors or the barbers in the community. Early dentistry consisted mostly of pulling teeth. Anyone with a pair of pliers could do the job. Dentistry has evolved over the years and involves much more than just pulling teeth today. General Dentistry today involves many things including: oral hygiene, filling caries (cavities), root canals, crowns, and making dentures. Some dentists specialize in areas such as orthodontics or oral surgery.
Composite restoration usage in dentistry is increasing. Because of this interest in the longevity and reliability of composite fillings also is increasing1. One problem that can occur with composite restorations is micro-leakage. This is when microgaps at the tooth-restoration interface allow fluids and bacteria into the restoration2. These gaps are formed when the material is polymerized and shrinks, which causes the material to pull away from the margins of the preporation2. Problems that can arise from micro-leakage are secondary carries, hypersensitivity, pulp stimulation, and marginal discoloration3. This is why dentists are trying to find ways to reduce micro-leakage of composite restorations.
In general, root caries have the same etiology as coronal cavities. S. mutans, Lactobacilli, and sometimes, Actinomyces are involved and are found in high numbers in root caries, but there are two main differences between enamel and root surface caries. (Flaitz) These differences cause the lesion on a root surface to be more destructive than that in enamel. First, because the pH at which demineralization will occur is higher for root cementum (approx. pH 6.0) than for enamel (approx. pH 5.0).(Wilkins) Therefore, root cementum has potential for demineralization at an earlier point in time than enamel does. Secondly, once the cementum is demineralized, the dentin contains dentinal tubules which, if present, are potential methods of entry for the pathogenic microbes as mentioned previously, such as S. mutans, Lactobacilli, and sometimes Actinomyces; whereas, enamel consists of tightly-arranged crystal prisms, which have a much lower chance for bacterial entry. The process of caries formation begins with colonization by acid-producing bacteria plaque. In the next step, Gram-positive bacteria invade the dentinal tubules, which leads to the ...
For those that have bad habits with cigarettes, Tobacco Cessation Counseling is available. Cigarettes cause tooth loss, rotting, and surface stains; hygienist make sure to pass this information to the patient and help them to understand that quitting is the best option if they want to keep their teeth. As said before, a hygienist informs the patient on what foods to avoid. Nutritional Counseling is provided if a hygienist believes there is danger with a patients teeth such as diseases. (Dental Hygiene Clinic) Any foods with high acidity is something a dental hygienist would recommend avoiding. For example, apples, hard candies, popcorn, diet sodas, and salad dressing. Enamel is the hardest structure in the human body. It’s even harder than bones. When the enamel is exposed to acid, it wears down and erodes. This is how tooth erosion and decay happens. They will educate the patient with what foods to replace the bad ones with. Although, a dentist is who performs the restorations, a hygienist can still inform what will happen. Because of the fact that hygienists usually see patients before the dentist, they will give feedback to the dentist and recommend restorations in the mouth. They specialize in providing clinical and educational services (Sealy Dental Center) so they are very useful to dentists. When a patient has missing, chipped, or sharpened teeth, a restoration is done to replace the originals. Some examples
The first solution for tooth cavities is visiting the dentist and filling the tooth cavities with dentistry. However, it is possible to remove tooth cavities at home in a natural way.
Dental practitioners take action to minimize the risk of a disease from certain procedures that may allow bacteria from the mouth to enter the bloodstream. Antibiotic premedication therapy is a prophylactic measure that prevents bacteria from being released into the blood stream. The bacteria can infect the heart lining, as well as the valves or blood vessels, causing them to become inflamed. Infective endocarditis (IE), the name for the inflammation, has the potential to be fatal or debilitating. The risk of developing IE can happen from a combi¬nation of high-risk patients and dental procedures. While this is not an issue for most patients, some do require protection. The American Heart Association recommends antibiotic premedication therapy before dental procedures. But only for those whose cardiac conditions as well as a few other conditions are associated with the highest risk of adverse outcome.3
Good oral hygiene is an essential part of nursing care and if left undone can lead to larger problems such as increased risk for pneumonia, tooth loss, mucosal lesions, and increased complications of comorbidities (Delgado, 2016). There needs to be a revision to the current oral care policy because oral hygiene is not being performed on the residents. This policy will benefit the patients and the facility. Patients will benefit from better oral hygiene thus reducing the risk of overall infection. The facility will benefit by saving money related unnecessary spending on items such as antibiotics and intravenous (IV) supplies.
It is a vital role of a dentist to prevent the dental problems in order to decrease the number of oral disease.
Imagine having to spend half your fortune on correcting your teeth.”Tooth decay was a perennial national problem that meant a mouthful of silver for patients, and for dentists a pocketful of gold.” (Wallis, 17) If patients don’t take care of their teeth, many issues can start to appear later in their life. Some patients are not knowledgeable of the correct procedures toward keeping a healthy smile. In order to keep a healthy smile patients must be better informed about the knowledge to achieve that success and also maintain.
A dental hygienist is a very important role in any dental office. As stated by a dental assistant, “Dental hygienists work closely with the dentist as well as hands on with the patients. They assist dentists with operative procedures such as fillings and extractions, and making molds of patients teeth” (Wilson, Jennifer). A large part of their job is teaching patients proper dental care to ensure a lifetime of healthy teeth. This includes proper brushing and flossing techniques. According to the job out look, a day as a dental hygienist can include taking x-rays, cleaning and scaling teeth, charting treatment plans, putting sealants on teeth, taking impressions of teeth and completing information about the patient’s oral and medical history (Summary). In some states dental hygienist are allowed to give local anesthetic and place and remove sutures (Delivering Local Anesthetic). According to advantages of becoming a dental hygienist, hygienists spend more hands on time with the patients than the dentist does. These are some of the instruments that dental hygienists use on a daily basis: toothbrush, scaler, mirror, ultrasonic scaler, explorer, suction, computer, salvia ejector, rubber cap polisher, dental models, x-ray machine and probe. The dental hygienist uses a toothbrush to remove soft plaque from the teeth. Plaque is a soft coating on the teeth that contain bacteria. The bacteria can cause tooth decay and gum disease. The amount of plaque on the teeth gives the hygienist an idea of how well the daily brushing and flossing of the patient’s teeth are completed on a regular basis. The scaler is used to remove hardened plaque or calculus from the teeth. The mirror is used to look closely at the surfaces of the teeth a...
o Please describe a time when you performed a thorough head, neck and oral exam and the findings had a significant impact on how you proceeded with the dental hygiene process of care. Annette was performing her usual head, neck, and oral exam on a patient and found an enlarged thyroid. She recommended to the patient that she go see her primary care physician to get a better diagnosis. The patient went to her primary care physician and was told there was probably nothing. Later, the patient returned to the dental office and saw Annette and told her what the physician said.
Infection control is a central concept to every practice of health care providers. Its main objective is to prevent the transmission of infectious diseases from both patients and health personnel (Martin et al., 2010). In dental clinic, infection control is a continuous concern for its professionals. They have to contact patients routinely and be exposed to their blood, saliva, dental plaque and pus that may contain infectious pathogens. It is important for the dental professionals to treat these fluids as if they are infectious and special precautions must be taken to handle them. In this essay, I will highlight the scope of infection control practices in dental clinics and the ways through which infectious microorganisms are transmitted in the dental clinic. Also, I will talk about some infection control guidelines implemented in dental clinics and how they meet the needs of the patients. Finally, from a personal perspective, I will mention some factors that affect the implantation of infection control guidelines and procedures.
The gum tissue begins pulling away from the teeth. This creates pockets that allow bacteria to build up, which leads to an infection. As your body fights the harmful bacteria, the bone and tissue holding the teeth in place begin breaking down. The pockets deepen and begin filling with pus. Once you reach this stage, you may need to have surgery to save your teeth. If not treated, the infection begins destroying the bone around the teeth. If the bones, tissue and gums supporting your teeth are destroyed, the teeth may begin to shift, loosen and/or fall out.
Dentists have been around for thousands of years. Dentistry got its start in the Indus Valley of India And Pakistan. “The earliest history of treating tooth related problems goes all the way back to 7000 BC, where the Indus Valley Civilization shows evidence of treating the mouth for tooth decay. The first method of treatment was bow drills, which were ancient primitive tools used for woodworking and treating tooth problems.” (http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2012/12/the-history-of-dentistry/)paragrah1 .These industrious would be dentists were master bead makers who used bow drills to cure tooth problems. From the ancient Egyptians to the Greco-Romans to early Chinese civilizations dentists have existed to aid the people with their teeth problems.
The existence of micro-leakage in dental restorations was first identified in scientific research in 19126. In a study done by Harper (1912), air pressure was used to penetrate the surface between an amalgam restoration and cavity preparation7. By applying pressure through a hole in the pulpal floor, Harper could quantify the amount of pressure needed to establish leakage through the emergence of bubbles from the margins of the restoration. Research has come a long way since Harper first recognized micro-leakage. Adaptations of new materials used when placing composite restorations like BondAband, a light-cured glass-ionomer cement has been shown to reduce marginal micro-leakage in posterior restorations8. A decrease in microleakage has also been shown with the use of an ...