Preventing cavities to maintain your smile confidence
Piedra Dental Group helps patients from across the Cooper City, Florida area find confidence in their smile. But, ideally, Drs. Alejandro Piedra and Robert Weishoff help patients maintain confidence in their smiles by protecting the teeth and gums from damage that requires treatment. Cavities are among the most common sources of oral damage, affecting one in five kids by the age of 12. However, cavity treatment with dental fillings and other interventions doesn’t have to be in your or your child’s future.
What is a cavity?
Cavities arise when sticky bacterial plaque builds up in your mouth. Whenever sugary or starchy drinks or foods are consumed, the bacteria produce acids that attack the teeth. These acids work their way through the tooth structure, penetrating the protective enamel surface, where they produce holes—or cavities.
What happens when I don’t treat a cavity?
Without treatment, cavities become larger, and decay may progress to the deeper layers of the tooth. A baby tooth may be lost, or an adult tooth may require root canal therapy just to “save it” from severe decay or to resolve an infection. When teeth cannot be preserved with root canal therapy or other endodontic procedures, they must be extracted or removed and replaced with a bridge or dental implant. Put simply, treating the cavity early on is less traumatic, time-consuming, and costly.
How do you treat cavities?
The “go-to” treatment for this more modest form of tooth decay is the filling. Fillings are dental materials planned, designed, shaped, and secured to replace the lost tooth structure. This restoration “fills in” the hole to build up the strength and regain the structural integrity of the affected tooth. That being said, fillings are not appropriate for all cavities.
What alternatives do you offer to fillings?
After Drs. Piedra or Weishoff examines your tooth, and they may recommend more minimal interventions. For instance, enamel erosion can be stopped in its tracks by introducing oral care products, fluoride supplements, dental sealants, and tailored cleaning techniques. We may recommend porcelain inlays/onlays (porcelain fillings) or dental crowns for bigger fillings or to replace an old or worn filling. In these examples, a simple filling might be inadequate to build up a tooth that is missing more of its structure. In all that we do, our team at Piedra Dental Group ensures your tooth is treated in a way that supports your smile’s sustained health and beauty. You get more of your treatment when partnering with our team in Cooper City, Florida.
How can I prevent cavities?
This is key—we want to be proactive rather than reactive, stopping cavities before they start, progress, and require treatment. The No. 1 thing you can always do to prevent cavities and other oral problems is to maintain visits to our office. During these visits, we can advise on ways to brush and floss your or a child’s teeth better. To schedule your visit, contact us at (954) 329-0673 today.
