dentistry

The American Dental Association and dentists everywhere, including our own Dr. Werner recommend that you schedule an appointment every six months for a cleaning and checkup. Despite this universal recommendation from the experts, some people believe regular cleanings and checkups are unnecessary unless there is something wrong with your teeth—for example, a cavity or a toothache. In fact, coming in for a six-month checkup and cleaning is one of the most important things you can do for your oral health, as well as your overall health.

Why It’s Important to Visit Regularly

Numerous studies have shown that oral health is closely tied to the overall health of your whole body. In fact, having a healthy mouth can help the rest of your body stay in balance. On the other hand, an unhealthy mouth can cause all kinds of problems for you down the road.

One of the most important things we do at our office when you come in for cleanings is remove plaque that has collected on your teeth and around your gums. If left untreated, plaque build-up can cause inflammation and irritation around your gums, and lead to gum diseases like gingivitis and periodontal disease.

According to the American Academy of Periodontology, periodontal disease has been linked to increased risk for serious health conditions such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, inflammation, osteoporosis, and pregnancy complications.

Most oral health issues will begin with subtle changes before progressing into more serious conditions. If you visit us for regular checkups, we may be able to identify common indicators that could lead to larger issues down the road. If we only see you at our office every few years, it becomes more difficult to catch these conditions before they grow into bigger and more painful problems.

What Happens at a Dental Checkup?

When you come in for your regular checkup, there are several things our dentists and hygienists may do, including:

• Take X-rays to determine the overall health of your teeth, jaw, bones, and the tissue surrounding your teeth, including a check for early signs of tooth decay, abnormal growths, cavities, and other damage that is not immediately visible
• Perform a thorough cleaning of your mouth and teeth to remove any excess plaque and tartar, then polish and floss your teeth
• Check for signs of gum disease or evidence of tooth decay
• Examine your bite, and look for broken or damaged teeth
• Identify any changes to your gums or teeth since your last visit
• Examine your head and neck for signs of oral health problems

Waiting to visit Dr. Werner until you already have a problem such as a cavity is like waiting to put gasoline in your car until after you run out and your vehicle is stalled on the side of the road. Once you have a problem, the ripple effect can cause you a lot of pain, take considerably more time, and cost a lot more money to fix than if you had come in for preventive care and cleanings every six months.

References: American Academy of Periodontology (2012). Gum Disease Links to Heart Disease and Stroke. Retrieved from http://www.perio.org/consumer/mbc.heart.htm

At our practice, we see a lot of patients who are concerned about their bad breath, also known as halitosis. So today we thought we would educate our patients about what you can do to keep your pearly whites clean and your breath minty fresh!

Naturally, good oral hygiene on your part is the first step. With proper brushing and flossing you can keep halitosis in check. Even though you may have done an excellent job of brushing and flossing your teeth, if you fail to brush your tongue, you may still have bad breath. Bad breath is caused by odor-producing bacteria that grow in your mouth. Certain foods, medications, smoking, sinus issues, or even gum disease can cause bad breath.

Besides proper brushing and flossing, bad breath can be prevented if you:

Stop smoking/chewing tobacco-based products: Ask our team for tips on kicking the habit.

Keep your mouth hydrated: Because a dry mouth typically leads to bad breath, drinking water or eating oranges or celery may help.

Visit our office for regular dental checkups: By visiting us at least twice a year, you will keep bad breath at bay. We will conduct an oral exam and will be able detect and treat periodontal disease, dry mouth, or other problems that may be the cause of bad mouth odor.

You water the garden three times a week, you change your car's oil every three months, and you replace the batteries in your smoke detectors once a year. Your teeth need to see your dentist on a regular schedule, too.

</p?While daily oral hygiene habits are essential to good oral health, professional dental cleanings at our office ensure your teeth are treated to a deeper level of cleaning. We recommend for most of our patients to have a checkup at least every six months. In addition to a thorough cleaning and polishing of your teeth, these regular visits help us detect and prevent the onset of tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease. During your visit, we’ll check the health of your mouth, teeth, gums, cheeks, and tongue. We’ll also check old fillings and restorations, as these can wear away over time from constant chewing, grinding, or clenching.

If you are predisposed to oral diseases, you may need to visit our office more often than every six months. Factors at play in these diseases include age, pregnancy, tobacco use, medical conditions (such as diabetes, dry mouth, or HIV infection), along with how well you take care of your teeth on a daily basis.

Make sure your teeth get the professional attention they deserve – If you’re overdue for your next cleaning, check with our office to schedule an appointment!

Brushing your teeth every day keeps them cleaner, improves your breath, and reduces plaque buildup. But did you know that there may be a connection between your dental health and chronic illness? Some scientific evidence suggests that poor dental health may be linked to cardiovascular disease. Although more research is needed to explore this association, it provides yet another reason to brush your teeth twice per day, floss daily, and visit your dentist regularly.

Over 2,400 people die from cardiovascular disease each day, making it an immense public health problem. Cardiovascular disease occurs when arteries become harder, making it more difficult for blood to easily pass through your circulatory system. Plaques also build up in your blood vessels, further restricting blood flow. Periodontal disease, also known as gum disease, affects nearly 75% of the U.S. population, according to the American Academy of Periodontology. It is a chronic inflammatory condition that can cause bone and gum tissue to deteriorate, causing bad breath, swollen or bleeding gums, sensitive teeth, and loose teeth.

If periodontal disease affects your teeth and cardiovascular disease affects your heart, what’s the connection between the two? Scientists have known for years that the two conditions share several risk factors. Increasing age, cigarette smoking, and type 2 diabetes increase your risk of developing both periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease. None of these risk factors, however, explain the causal mechanism connecting the two conditions.

According to a 2009 review article by the editors of the American Journal of Cardiology and the Journal of Periodontology, one possible explanation is inflammation. Moderate to severe periodontal disease triggers chronic systemic inflammation, affecting not only your mouth but also your circulatory system, leading to cardiovascular disease. Another hypothesis is that bacteria from your mouth can cause heart disease. People with periodontal disease have billions of bacteria and other microorganisms teeming in their mouths. Chewing food and brushing your teeth release these bacteria into the bloodstream. The Harvard Heart Letter reports that the types of bacteria that cause periodontitis have been associated with plaque buildup in your arteries.

Not all scientific findings have shown a relationship between the two conditions. In April 2012, the American Heart Association published a scientific statement in the journal Circulation denying that gum disease causes heart attacks or stroke. The American Dental Association’s Council on Scientific Affairs and the World Heart Federation also endorsed the statement, agreeing that there is no conclusive evidence that the conditions are related. More scientific research needs to be performed to determine the exact relationship between periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease.

Although the scientific evidence has been mixed, periodontal disease can be very harmful to your health even if it does not lead to cardiovascular disease. It is important to reduce your risk of gum disease by careful tooth brushing, frequent flossing, and regular trips to the dentist.

Thanks for the question! Yes! In fact, it's even more important that patients receiving orthodontic treatment visit our office regularly. When you're wearing braces, food may be caught in places that your toothbrush normally can't reach. This causes bacteria to build up and can lead to cavities, gingivitis and even gum disease. Believe it or not, an estimated 80 percent of American adults currently have some form of gum disease. Studies have shown a correlation between gum disease and heart disease, underscoring the importance of good oral health care. Our team will work closely with your orthodontist to make sure that your teeth stay clean and healthy while you're undergoing orthodontic treatment.

If it has been more than six months since your last visit to our office, please give us a call! We look forward to your next visit!

Thanks for the question. Your first visit with Dr. Werner typically includes an x-ray that allows us to view the structure of the jaw, the position of any teeth that have not yet erupted, malformed roots, and tooth decay.

The initial visit also involves getting your medical history. When you share your medical history with us, be sure to provide complete, up-to-date information on your health. Please let us know if you have experienced recent hospitalization or surgery, or if you have recently been ill. Also tell us the names, doses, and frequency of any medications you are taking — whether prescription or over-the-counter products — and the name of your physician. Please also let us know about any changes in your health or medications. This information will us select the most safe and effective method of treatment path for you.

Have any more questions about your first visit with Dr. Werner? Please give us a call!

At Dr. Werner's office, we know image is everything. May, which is almost here, happens to be National Teen Self-Esteem Month, and during this time, parents are encouraged to act as positive role models, help stop negative self-images, and improve confidence and security among teenagers.

We know one of the great ways to improve your confidence is to improve your smile. And that begins with a visit to Dr. Werner's office. Has your child visited us in the past six months for his or her regular check-up? We invite you to give us a call to book your appointment!

See you soon!

Toothaches occur when the nerve root of a tooth is irritated and can be caused by an infection, gum disease, decay (cavities), or injury. If your child complains of a toothache, rinse his or her mouth with warm water and inspect the teeth to be sure there is nothing caught between them. If pain continues, use a cold compress to ease the pain. Do not apply heat or any kind of aspirin or topical pain reliever directly to the affected area, as this can cause damage to the gums. Children's pain relievers may be taken orally.

If the toothache persists, it is important to give us a call to determine the cause of the pain and provide relief. Immediate contact should be pursued if your child experiences:

· Pain that is not be relieved by over-the-counter drugs
· Severe pain after a tooth is pulled which may be dry socket syndrome
· Pain associated with swelling of the gums or face, or discharge around a tooth, especially if accompanied by a fever
· Broken or knocked-out teeth from an accident or injury

We hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions below or by giving us a call!

Spring is in the air! As you probably know, you can always connect with us on our Facebook page, but we invite you to please contact our office with any updates to phone numbers and addresses, so that we may be able to reach you.

We also encourage you to call us and let us know if you have any new phone numbers or if your contact information has changed!

Thank you! Have a great week!

Visiting our office regularly will not only help keep your teeth and mouth healthy, but will also help keep the rest of your body healthy. The fact is, every hour of every day in the U.S., someone dies of oral cancer, which is the sixth-most common diagnosed form of the disease. The five-year survival rate is only 50 percent, and oral cancer is one of the few cancers whose survival rate has not improved. Since April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month, we would like to take this opportunity to remind all of our patients about the importance of maintaining good oral hygiene.

We are trained to diagnose, treat, and prevent oral health problems. Please let us now if you have any questions about your oral health during your next appointment. Take care of your teeth!

Dental X-rays are an essential and invaluable tool to help assist us in evaluating your oral health. With X-rays, we can see what’s happening beneath the surface of your teeth and gums and identify oral health issues otherwise hidden during a visual exam, including:

• · small areas of decay between the teeth or below existing restorations (fillings)
• · infections in the bone
• · periodontal (gum) disease
• · abscesses or cysts
• · developmental abnormalities
• · types of tumors

If left untreated, these problems can lead to expensive, time-consuming, and painful conditions, so it’s important to find and treat them early.

Dental X-rays are extremely safe, and our team is certified in the proper use of our digital X-ray equipment. The amount of radiation that you are exposed to from dental X-rays is very small compared to your daily exposure from things like atmospheric radiation and naturally-occurring radioactive elements, as well as medical X-rays you may have gotten at your doctor’s office or hospital. In fact our digital system dramatically decreases the already minimal amount of exposure even further.  We try to be as conservative as possible when prescribing x-rays but do need them to see what is going on where our eyes can't see.

You water the garden three times a week, you change your car's oil every three months, and you replace the batteries in your smoke detectors once a year. Your teeth need to see your dentist on a regular schedule, too.

While daily oral hygiene habits are essential to good oral health, professional dental cleanings at our office ensure your teeth are treated to a deeper level of cleaning. We recommend for most of our patients to have a checkup at least every six months. In addition to a thorough cleaning and polishing of your teeth, these regular visits help us detect and prevent the onset of tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease. During your visit, we’ll check the health of your mouth, teeth, gums, cheeks, and tongue. We’ll also check old fillings and restorations, as these can wear away over time from constant chewing, grinding, or clenching.

If you are predisposed to oral diseases, you may need to visit our office more often than every six months. Factors at play in these diseases include age, pregnancy, tobacco use, medical conditions (such as diabetes, dry mouth, or HIV infection), along with how well you take care of your teeth on a daily basis.

Make sure your teeth get the professional attention they deserve – If you’re overdue for your next cleaning, check with our office to schedule an appointment!

If you have missing teeth, it is crucial to replace them. Without all your teeth, chewing and eating can destabilize your bite and cause you discomfort. Dental implants are a great option for replacing missing or badly diseased teeth. A dental implant offers comfort, support, stability, and is as close to a natural tooth that a restoration can be.

There are many benefits to dental implants:

• Dental implants restore your ability to chew food properly.
• They fill out a face that may otherwise look sunken in because of missing teeth.
• They don’t need to be removed for overnight cleaning and soaking.
• No adhesives are needed.
• You’ll feel more confident to show off your smile to the world.
• Each implant is created to fit in perfectly with the look of the rest of your teeth.

Simply put, yes! Visiting the dentist on a regular basis is essential to keeping your smile in tip-top shape. At our office, we offer a number of preventive services to ensure the health of your mouth and the beauty of your teeth. We’d like to think that your smile is just as important to us as it is to you!

Another good reason to visit us every six months is to check for “hidden” problems you may not even realize you have. Tiny cavities can form in the hard-to-reach areas of your teeth and may only be found through a professional exam. If left untreated, these cavities can get worse, needing more extensive treatment, and costing you even more time and money. During your routine exam, your hygienist will also check to make sure your fillings or other dental restorations are in good shape.

If it has been more than six months since your last visit to our office, please give us a call! We look forward to your next visit!

Yesterday was Presidents’ Day, a day known for celebrating of both George Washington’s and Abraham Lincoln’s combined Birthdays. Presidents’ Day was created in 1971, when President Richard Nixon combined the birthdays of two of our most well-known presidents into one single federal holiday. Presidents' Day also marks a hard-earned day off from work and school for a lot of our patients at Dr. Erich M. Werner, D.D.S..

Here are a few fun facts about our nation’s presidents:

*Abraham Lincoln, our 16th president, carried letters, bills and notes in his tall stovepipe hat.

*George Washington is the first president to be featured on a postage stamp.

*Ronald Reagan, our 40th president, broke the so-called "20-year curse," in which every president elected in a year ending in zero died in office.

*Abraham Lincoln was the tallest of the U.S. presidents, measuring 6’ 4” tall.

*Virginia is the birthplace of more United States presidents than any other state, followed by Ohio and Massachusetts.

*Harry S. Truman was the first president to have his Inauguration and speeches televised.

Did you know February marks National Dental Health Month? It’s a great time of the year to renew those resolutions about continuing to practice great dental hygiene. Today, Dr. Werner & team thought we’d discuss the importance of preventative oral care. While most people are familiar with traditional heart-saving practices such as eating healthy and exercising regularly, lesser-known are the benefits that great oral hygiene provides to one’s cardiovascular health.

Here are a few tips to help you continue those New Year’s resolutions:

*Remember that poor oral hygiene is linked to serious common diseases such as cardiovascular disease, bacterial pneumonia and osteoporosis.
Teeth are the only non-shedding surface in your body, which suggests teeth have the highest bacterial levels in the entire body.

*Brush and floss every day to remove the plaque that can lead to cavities. Flossing daily removes food debris that your toothbrush cannot reach.

*Replace your toothbrush on a regular basis. You should replace your toothbrush every three to four months or after a cold or illness to prevent re-infection. Remember to use a soft toothbrush so you won’t wear off the enamel of your teeth.

*If heart disease runs in the family, a diagnosis of gum disease increases the likelihood of developing heart disease, but an improved oral care regimen and healthy diet can lower the risk.

*Visit our Los Gatos office regularly. The American Dental Association recommends you visit Dr. Werner every six months for regular checkups and cleanings. Fluoride treatments twice a year will help prevent tooth decay.

Each February, our team at Erich Werner DDS focus on the preventive oral care of our patients. Have you visited our office the past six months? If not, it’s time to give us a call and schedule an appointment! See you soon!