Friday, April 30, 2010

Braces: No Pain, receding Gums & Falling Brackets

Everytime I put on braces on a patient, I always try to remember the teeth and it's basic structure.

I am moving teeth and to do so I must consider how each part of the teeth & its supporting structures are affected.



ENAMEL
Putting the braces, I must consider the condition of the enamel, which is the outermost layer of the tooth . Is it  hard and healthy or is it chalky or mottled which will make brackets hard to stick to it?

 mottled enamel

DENTIN & PULP
Once the braces are on, I must now regulate the quality, quantity & direction of the forces so that the dentin and pulp containing the nerves will not hurt, or worst, be injured. Too much force or too long a force will cause pain.




BONE & LIGAMENT SUPPORTS
Once the teeth have moved, we now see beyond the pulp and consider whether continuous or interruptive force will be appropriate to protect the gums and surrounding bone of the teeth. Here is where the length of force applied matters and affects the tooth support the most. Too much of the strong force if applied too long will eventually make one lose bone and thus gums to go down to a level where the roots of the teeth show, termed  "recession".
receding gum on upper canine 

From the start of treatment be aware and be wary :-)  


Thursday, April 1, 2010

You Need Braces if....(2)

Dental braces (also known as orthodontic braces, or simply braces)




are a device used in orthodontics to align teeth and their position with regard to a person's bite. They are often used to correct malocclusions such as  
crowding / crooked teeth



underbites




 


 crossbites



open bites











Wednesday, March 31, 2010

You need braces if.....(1)

Your teeth are crowded, not in a straight alignment
The doctor would call this a CLASS 1 malocclusion


Your upper front teeth is too forward, over your lower front teeth. 
Your upper lip is protruder over your lower lip.
The doctor would call this a CLASS 2 malocclusion
OR Excessive overbite


Your upper front teeth is too far backward, over your lower teeth
Your upper lip is retruded over your lower lip
The doctor would call this a CLASS 3 malocclusion
OR underbite


Saturday, March 27, 2010

Monday, March 15, 2010

ADEC PERFORMER Dental Chair FOR SALE!

ADEC PERFORMER dental chair
2003 model
used only until 2005 and not used since
FREE 1-year service maintenance by ADEC technician

Interested?
Call Dr. Melanie Cera
Sun 09233969977
Smart 09209017404
Email: melanieaquino@yahoo.com



















Wednesday, October 21, 2009

A NASA Invention in the World of Braces

Invisible Tooth-Colored Braces




Even celebs have teeth problems. See actor Tom Cruise's invisible ceramic braces. Many t­eenagers cringe at the prospect of braces. Getting one's teeth in order used to mean enduring a mouth full of metal, but not so anymore. Invisible braces hit the market in 1987, and now there are multiple brands.

Invisible braces are made of translucent polycrystalline alumina (TPA). A company called Ceradyne developed TPA in conjunction with NASA Advanced Ceramics Research to protect the infrared antennae of heat-seeking missile trackers.

In the meantime, another company, Unitek, was working on a new design for dental braces -- a design that would be more aesthetically pleasing and would not have the shiny metallic factor. It discovered that TPA would be strong enough to withstand use and is translucent, making it a prime material for invisible braces. Because of their instant popularity, invisible braces are one of the most successful products in the orthodontic industry [source: NASA Scientific and Technical Information].