Airway Obstruction In Children

An important area we need to focus on is the airway structures of the nose and mouth.  When a dentist examines a patient, one must look for blocked nasal passages as well as problems within the mouth.  This can involve swollen tissues such as adenoids (behind the nose) and tonsils.

The most common upper airway obstruction is respiratory tract allergies.  Inhalant agents are pollen, animal dander, spores, home dust, feathers and detergents.  Hypersensitivity reactions start and release histamine which causes congestion and swelling.

The adenoids and tonsils should start to disappear around 4 years of age.  At puberty, maturing bone marrow in the growing child produces cells called lymphocytes, which take over the role of the tonsils and adenoids.  Enlarged tonsils obstruct the nose which results in breathing problems that can cause nasal speech, postnasal discharge, coughing, vomiting or alterations in facial expressions like an open mouth breathing habit.  Retaining tonsils and adenoids cause abnormal tongue posture via proprioception (feelings).  Abnormal tongue posture also does not allow the jaw bones to develop properly.

We all must keep in mind the most important substance needed in life is not food or water.  The body MUST HAVE oxygen!  With any airway obstructions such as blockages, we will get lowered blood oxygen saturation (weakness).  This can cause many physical problems such as lowered exercise tolerance, below average intellectual achievement, behavioral disorders, difficulties in breathing, poor eating habits and overall nutritional depletion.  Poor oxygen intake from the nose and mouth can disturb all optimum growth potentials.

If your children show any of these symptoms, have your dentist or physician check for airway obstruction issues.

The Triangle Of Your Face

Travelling over the holidays, I always like to hit the news stores to check out the latest magazines for the airplane ride.  I am continually amazed by how many magazines have beautiful closeup faces on their covers.  We all unconsciously look at these as we peruse the aisles.  What we are really seeing that attracts us is the triangle of the face, the eyes and the teeth.  The eyes are what they are and it's hard to change the eye color without using unnatural contacts.  Your eyes are what nature intended. The teeth, however, are so important in size, shape, color and balance on each and every face.  A beautiful smile gives a person confidence and even makes a person happy with themselves.  There's a glow about people who care enough to do the best with their mouth.  When I change a person's smile and give them a mirror to look at the finished product for the first time, I go back to the magazines covers.  The new smile reflects the balance of eyes and teeth on the face like nature intended.

Why Do So Many Baby Boomers Dislike Going To The Dentist?

I recently treated a patient that I will call Matt.  He is just over 60 and a handsome man I might add.  One problem though.  He had not seen a dentist in 35 years.  Matt fortunately had a happy ending.  Even though his teeth were caked in plaque, he had great genes and very healthy teeth.  His smile has been restored to a Hollywood look and life is good.


However, Matt's case begs the question.  What took him so long?  Matt disclosed that he had a horrible experience when he was 30 something and just never went back.  Please remember, your mouth is part of your body.  It needs preventive care and maintenance.  If you had a bad experience with your family doctor years ago, would you just stop going to the doctor?  Of course not.  God forbid what would have happened to your physical health over those years.  My theory is that are many more people, especially ages 55-64, that feel just like Matt about going to the dentist.


Let's face it.  The tools my colleagues had 3 decades ago weren't very good compared to what we have today.  Their drills sounded like 3 speed lawnmowers and their needles were as wide as the Alaska Pipeline.


Modern dentistry has made life easier for the patients and us docs.  We have extra light for our more precise instruments.  We can pinpoint.  The methods available to us in diagnosing specific problems are nothing short of awesome.  This is not your father's dentist office.  Gee, my childhood dentist worked out of his house.   Believe it or not, my parents were asking him for estimates to fill my teeth with and without Novacaine.  Yikes!!


It is so senseless, with all of the advancement in technology, not to have a healthy and pain free mouth and a beautiful smile to go with it.


 All we are saying, is give modern dentistry a chance...

Gumline Trauma

When we see a loss of tooth structure near the gumline in our patients, we carefully look for different reasons as to why this happens.  Mainly it is from toothbrush abrasion (brushing your teeth too hard with the wrong type of toothbrush), erosion or a combinaton of both of these.  As dentists, we must question patients on how hard they brush their teeth, what kind of toothbrush they use (hard or soft) and how many times a day they are brushing.  All of these factors contribute to changes in the thinnest part of the enamel meeting the root surface.  Another important factor in losing tooth structure on your gumline is heavy chewing which affects the surface of the tooth.  This heavy stress penetrates down to the thin enamel on the gumline area and breakdown of the tooth bonds occur.  Teeth without sound gum structure around them can be very painful but the good news is that it can be corrected and after a thorough examination, we can formulate a treatment plan to address the missing enamel using a variety of treatments available such as fillings and maybe even an occlusal (night) guard.   You don't have to tolerate this pain any longer. 

The Dental Makeover

I wanted to share before and after pictures of one of my patients.  This one is of my husband.  First,  can you believe this guy is in his late 50's?  Over the years he was what we dentists call a "grinder".  Grinding his teeth in his sleep every night.  It took its toll on his lower teeth and caused some moderate creases in his lower face as the jaw settled more into his upper teeth.  With full mouth restoration, not only were his top teeth done in beautiful porcelain, but his lower teeth were restored which changed all of his facial features.  He went from a round face to more of a natually oval feature.  Some people say he has lost weight but no, same weight.  In fact the before picture was taken in 2005  and the after was taken 4 years later.  The so called "dental makeover" gave him a younger and more vibrant appearance. 

Before Restoration

After Restoration