Preventive Dentistry
Keeping your smile whole and healthy is our main priority at Rowen Dentistry. Our Boca Raton dental team is dedicated to achieving and maintaining the optimal level of oral health. With twice a year dental checkups and teeth cleanings, preventive services, and oral health screenings, we’ll work hard to keep your smile whole and healthy for a lifetime. Contact us to find out more or schedule an appointment with our dedicated dental team.
Dental Checkups & Cleanings
Dental checkups and teeth cleanings are the foundations for a lifetime of healthy smiles. These preventive care appointments give us the opportunity to assess and diagnose potential oral health issues in the very earliest stages. Then, we can administer conservative dental care options to preserve the maximum amount of healthy dental structures, and keep patients smiling. The Rowen Dentistry team looks forward to partnering with you to achieve and maintain your healthiest smile
Nightguards for Bruxism
Bruxism occurs when patients experience excessive teeth grinding or clenching. This typically occurs while patients are sleeping, but some people find themselves grinding or clenching their teeth throughout the day and night. Many people only experience bruxism at stressful times, following an injury, or for other physiological reasons, but there are others who have chronic bruxism. If you notice chips, wear, or gum tissue recession that can occur due to bruxism, let our team know. If we determine you’re suffering from bruxism, our team will work with you to develop a personalized treatment plan to protect your smile from damage. In many cases, a comfortable, custom mouthguard worn during sleep provides the necessary relief. Others may benefit from some changes to the overall bite, daily routines, stress relief, or over the counter pain relievers.
Oral Cancer Screening
Did you know that one person in the US dies from oral cancer each hour? More than half of those diagnosed this year will not live five years beyond their diagnosis, and here’s the important thing for those who don’t smoke, oral cancer can effect anyone. A quarter of those patients diagnosed do not engage in any high-risk behaviors including tobacco use. We use the Vizlite oral cancer screening tool to check for early indicators of the disease during every checkup. Our goal is to help decrease the number of annual oral cancer-related deaths by partnering with patients to achieve an earlier diagnosis.
Fluoride Treatments
Tooth decay occurs when plaque builds up on the surfaces of teeth without being removed regularly. Over time, the repeated attack on the tooth enamel by sticky-acidic plaque leads to weakened dental structures. Fluoride is a key nutrient in the development of strong, healthy teeth, and is an essential aspect of all daily oral hygiene routines which should include the use of fluoridated tooth pastes and/or mouthwashes. We can also offer fluoride supplements or topical fluoride treatments for those patients in need of an added fluoride boost to fortify their smiles.
How does Fluoride Help?
There are two main ways that fluoride benefits dental health – topically and systemically. Topical fluoride is essential to strengthen teeth once they have erupted from below the gum line. This is true for both primary and permanent teeth. Topical fluoride is found in toothpaste, mouth rinses, and at-home fluoride gels. In our office, we can provide a professional fluoride treatment by placing a coating of fluoridated gel onto teeth at each six-month checkup. We won’t recommend this for every patient, but for those whose teeth are prone to decay, topical fluoride can be extremely beneficial. Ingested fluoride from tap waters, fortified foods, and supplements can improve the strength of teeth before they erupt from the gum line. It’s important that patients work with our team before adding a fluoride supplement to their diets as excessive fluoride consumption can also lead to dental discoloration known as fluorosis (white spots on teeth).
When do you Recommend Professional Fluoride Treatments?
Most of our patients receive adequate fluoride from tap waters, foods, and daily tooth brushing. However, there are many patients who experience frequent tooth decay or excessive wear of tooth enamel despite their best efforts. We typically recommend professional fluoride treatments during checkups for the following reasons:
- To strengthen teeth with deep grooves and pits on the biting surfaces of teeth that allow bacteria and plaque to accumulate weakening enamel
- To desensitize exposed roots or overly sensitive teeth
- To protect tooth enamel for patients with decreased saliva flow (dry mouth) that may lead to excessive wear or weakened enamel
- To help patients with poor oral hygiene habits and those who frequently consume sugary or acidic foods and beverages
- To fortify teeth that receive inadequate fluoride prior to eruption
- To prevent tooth decay for patients who experience frequent cavities
At-Home Hygiene Products
As long as you’re taking the time to brush and floss your teeth daily, you should be achieving some level of success with your at-home hygiene routine. However, there are some products we recommend to improve oral hygiene routines. Patients who experience dental sensitivity, excessive wear or frequent tooth decay may benefit from using Sensodyne tooth pastes. Those who have gum disease should consider adding an oral rinse like ACT restoring mouthwash, Biotene or Prevident to their daily routines.
Occlusal Adjustments for TMJ
Difficulty opening and closing your mouth? Pain when chewing? Clicking or grinding sound when you yawn? You may be suffering from temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction. The TMJ connects the jaw to the skull bone allowing for painless smooth jaw movement. When these small joints are damaged, patients experience jaw pain and a wide range of other side effects that may not be as obvious. Our team is skilled at offering therapies to restore the full, pain-free function of your smile.
