Our Terrigal Dental family continues to grow!
Meet Sam, our trainee dental assistant and receptionist.
Sam moved from Grafton to the Central Coast in 2015 and we are delighted that she has landed here in Terrigal.
In a short amount of time Sam has become a major part of our team and we are continuously amazed by how quickly she is learning.
You’re bound to leave your appointment happy after being treated by Sam and her infectious smile!
Coconut oil pulling or activated charcoal for your mouth?
These are the latest trends that keeps popping up all over our social media feeds. We being asked on a regular basis by many of our patients and friends if it really works?!
These alternative oral hygiene products claim many things from tooth whitening to internal health benefits, even their ability to eliminate decay and gum disease. We wanted to discuss our thoughts with you from the perspective of a dental professional.
oil pulling
Oil pulling is a technique that involves swishing oil around your mouth for around 20 minutes and is said to reduce decay and gum disease and improve dental health. Oil-pulling works through the mechanical action of the swishing removing bacteria from teeth, rather than the chemical nature of the oil itself. Whilst oil pulling is harmless and fine as a complement to an oral care routine, the oil on its own can’t stop decay and gum disease and should never replace tooth brushing, flossing and routine dental visits.
activated charcoal
In theory the activated charcoal toothpaste binds to everything in its path including tartar and bacteria, as it removes this from your teeth they will initially seem whiter and often the added perfumed oils such as peppermint can freshen your breath. In reality the course crushed charcoal can damage your tooth’s natural enamel and is potentially dangerous to your body. If you would like to whiten your smile the safest way to do so is by using a well-tested product as directed by your dentist. With over 20 years of research it has been determined that whitening with dental peroxide is completely safe. Bleaching your teeth with a dental peroxide creates an oxidation reaction making the by-product of that reaction oxygen and water.
our recommendations
We suggest that if you have any concerns or are considering trying any of these methods to discuss it with your dentist first. They are able to suggest the best products to suit your individual needs..
On the weekend our lovely receptionist Sam and Dr Charles participated in the Fun Fair at our local Primary School!
They had guessing competitions, prizes to be won and lots of samples to be given away! It was a beautiful day and they really enjoyed being a part of the day and talking with the community about all things dental.
Thanks for having us!
Why are we moving?
1. Better parking and no dealing with Terrigal traffic!
2. Level access so no more walking up the stairs!
Having been in our current location for 50 years now it is now time for a new beginning and a new place! Along with our new location we will also be welcoming our amazing Hygienist Sam to the practice, she will be working Mondays and Tuesdays. Sam specialises in children’s dental and also does thorough cleans for adults. We anticipate our move to be completely finished by the 12th of June however we will continue to inform our patients of our location when booking appointments to avoid any confusion.
Our practice name, phone number and opening hours have not changed so all is still as normal!
We look forward to continuing to give our patients the highest possible quality of care at our new location. See you there!
Everybody knows that brushing is important, BUT toothbrushes alone cannot get into all the gaps between your teeth where sneaky plaque can hide.
That’s where inter dental brushes also known as ‘Piksters’ come in.
Pikster’s are small rounded brushes designed to slide in and clean the spaces between teeth. It has tiny bristles on all sides that reach out and help to remove plaque in the small crevices between teeth. They have a wire core which can be bent to get to those hard to reach places right up the back! These small handy brushes can be carried in your wallet or pocket to be used in between brushing.
We recommend Pikster’s to many of our patients that would like a quicker, more convenient alternative to flossing.
There is a range of sizes available for purchase at our practice or in your local pharmacy.
This blog describes the rationale behind early orthodontic treatment in young children, generally aged 7 to 9. Orthodontic treatment can be divided into two phases:
Every child is different and depending on the severity of the issues, some children may require only phase 1 treatment, other children may require both phase 1 and phase 2 treatment to achieve an ideal result.
What are the benefits of starting orthodontic treatment early?
There are a number of benefits to starting orthodontic treatment early:
– it gives a better chance of getting a full correction
– it allows us to complete treatment that may avoid surgery
– it allows us to use growth to fix teeth
– it makes it less likely that we will have to extract permanent teeth
– younger children tend to co-operate better than older patients
– there is a better chance of getting full correction in phase 1, without the need for phase 2 treatment
What does early orthodontic treatment consist of?
The American Orthodontic Association recommends an orthodontic consultation for all kids by the age of 7. Early orthodontic treatment consists of intervention to allow the face and jaws to grow properly. This gives a better chance of full correction of any orthodontic issues as well as prevents relapse of the teeth following treatment. Early orthodontic treatment focuses on addressing any habits and establishing a proper pattern of breathing and swallowing to allow the face and jaws to grow in an ideal way.
Addressing any Habits
The first part of early orthodontic treatment is addressing any habits in order to get a neuromuscular balance to be able to address any orthodontic issues and to prevent relapse of the teeth following treatment. These habits mainly include:
All of these habits promote a low forward tongue posture which contributes to malpositioning of the teeth, they can also cause changes in the roof of the mouth. With these habits, frequency is more important than the habit, more than 6 hours will cause malposition of the teeth including a crossbite (where the lower teeth sit in front of the upper teeth), crowding and an open bite (where the front teeth don’t touch).
With using a pacifier, adverse dental effects may occur after 24 months of pacifier use, the effects are more significant after 48 months. Therefore, pacifier use should be discouraged after four years of age.
Thumb or finger sucking can be addressed with appliances such as a Bluegrass appliance that gets glued into the mouth and stops a child being able to position their thumb on the roof of their mouth.
A tongue thrust can be corrected with a device such as a Myomunchee, which promotes chewing and swallowing with the lips together in order to teach the tongue to position itself correctly (up in the palate instead of forwards) and thus correct the tongue thrust habit.
Correcting Breathing
The next part of treatment is to correct any breathing issues such as mouth breathing.
There are three main causes of mouth-breathing:
The most common cause of airway and breathing problems is enlarged tonsils or adenoids, but other factors such as allergies, asthma, sinus problems and deviated septums can contribute.
How does Mouth Breathing Cause Orthodontic Issues?
Mouth breathing causes orthodontic issues by promoting a more vertical growth pattern rather than a horizontal growth pattern. When the mouth is open, it drags everything downwards and backwards, resulting in a narrow upper jaw which leads to crowding and can lead to anterior and posterior crossbites (the upper teeth sitting behind the lower teeth). A narrow upper jaw causes restriction to the growth of the lower jaw as well. It also drags the chin downwards and backwards, causing the jaw joint to shift into an incorrect position which leads to bite dysfunction, with symptoms of headaches and facial pain. Finally, your lips are your face’s braces, so open lips encourage the front teeth to flare out.
What Other Issues Can Mouth Breathing Cause?
Crooked teeth can be a symptom of something larger. Mouth breathing can contribute to more holistic issues such as sleep-disordered breathing (snoring, obstructive sleep apnea) and as these issues can have a significant impact on overall health, it is important that they are treated as early as possible. Sleep-disordered breathing can have a flow-on effect to other areas of a child’s life, poor concentration in school is a significant effect, with children with sleep-disordered breathing will have 10-20 fewer IQ points, on average 5 IQ points per year that this is happening. Other effects can be irritability, bed wetting, hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder.
Correcting the Bite and Making Room for the Adult Teeth
Correcting the bite can consist of:
Expanding the palate is best done early, as at 8 years old, the face is 90% of its adult proportion but by puberty, the face is 100% of its adult proportion. We are able to to get more expansion of the palate (20-25mm) in children 6-8 years, this drops down to less than 12mm in children 12 years old. Expanding the palate helps to make room to move the teeth to correct crowding as well as assists in correcting the bite.
Expanding the palate is achieved with a device known as a banded or bonded hyrax, which is glued on to the upper teeth. It has a screw across the middle which is turned at regular intervals to slowly expand the palate. Once the palate is expanded to a reasonable amount, the appliance is left in the mouth for a few months to prevent relapse. This phase usually takes 4-5 months.
The next step is partial braces on the 4 front teeth and 2 back teeth, which usually are worn for 12-18 months. Partial braces can be used to correct any rotated or incorrectly angulated front teeth, closing space between front teeth and correcting any crossbites of the front teeth as well.
For children with overbites, 2×4 braces will often be combined with a MARA appliance, to encourage the jaw to grow in the correct position and hence correct the overbite.
For children with underbites, facemask headgear will be used in combination with 2×4 braces to encourage the upper jaw to grow whilst simultaneously restricting the growth of the lower jaw. Using facemask headgear can have the added benefit of increasing the airway space to improve breathing.
Following this treatment, retainers get provided for the child which are worn until all of the adult teeth have come through, at which point, we can assess whether the child will need phase 2 braces.
Who can provide orthodontic treatment?
Orthodontic treatment can be provided by a general dentist who has undergone extra training to be able to deliver orthodontic treatment. In more difficult cases or cases requiring surgery, your general dentist may refer you to an orthodontist for treatment.
Mouthwash should not be used as a substitute for toothbrushing and flossing but it is useful as a complement to your oral hygiene routine. When choosing a mouthwash, it is important to choose one that is alcohol-free as alcohol dries your mouth out and makes it more cavity-prone. It is also important to choose a mouthwash which contains fluoride. Fluoride strengthens your teeth and prevents decay.
If wisdom teeth are growing upright into their correct position in the mouth and not causing any pain or problems, then it is not necessary to have them removed. However, if they are impacted (growing at an angle) or causing crowding as there isn’t enough room for them to come through, then removal of your wisdom teeth may be necessary. The risk of leaving an impacted wisdom tooth is that it can lead to pain from gum infections and decay due to not being able to clean it properly. If you are unsure about whether to get your wisdom teeth removed, give the Terrigal Dental team a call on 4384 2101 to organize a full-mouth x-ray to assess the position of your wisdom teeth.
Here at Terrigal Dental we are all about Prevention! Attending regular visits to the dentist prevents toothaches and wallet aches. Lets put it into perspective, lets say you skip your 6 monthly check up and by the time you get around to coming back it has been 2 or 3 years since your last visit and you come in with a nasty toothache which can then result in paying upwards of $5000 to save that tooth. With regular preventative check-ups potential problems can be detected early and treated straight away. This approach represents the best value for money and prevention is better than a cure.
It doesn’t take very long for plaque and calculus to develop into decay, gum disease and other oral health problems. People must be aware that daily at home brushing is not sufficient enough to maintain adequate oral hygiene. It must be supplemented by professional cleaning at the dentist. Regular check ups are also essential for early warning signs that you may be unaware of including: Tooth decay, changes in the gums, underlying problems, damage or breakdown of previous dental work.
At Terrigal Dental we take a pro-active approach to address all potential problems before they have a chance to develop into serious conditions.
Terrigal Dental is very proud to have participated in the 2017 Leaders Leap!
The Leader’s Leap is not only about conquering a fear of heights but also raising money for the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service. The Central Coast community has often relied on the Westpac Rescue Helicopter in times of need, to help those that require urgent medical care.
Our very own Dr Charles abseiled down the 7 storey Crowne Plaza building in Terrigal on Friday 14th of July to raise the much-needed funds that support this worthy cause.
All the fearless leaders placed their lives in the hands of others, as countless do with the helicopter crew members, managing to raise over $46,000! Thank you to everyone who donated and helped to raise money for this wonderful cause!
