One of the most appealing reasons to choose dental implants over options such as bridges, partial dentures, and complete dentures is the fact that they function like natural teeth. 

Unlike bridges and dentures, which sit above the gumline, implants are embedded in the jawbone, designed to look like and to work like a natural tooth:

• A cylinder or screw, usually made of bio-compatible titanium, is surgically implanted into the jawbone. After several months, the implant fuses with the bone, a process called “osseointegration.” 
• An abutment is secured inside the implanted piece. This abutment extends above the gumline and serves to connect the implant to a crown. 
• A dental implant crown customized to match surrounding teeth in shape and appearance is securely attached to the abutment.

The result is a tooth that looks and functions just like a natural tooth, with a secure implant acting as a root below the gumline attached to a realistic-looking crown above it. What does this unique design mean for you?

• Implants Are Secure

Because implants are rooted in your jaw, there is no need to worry about loose dental work or difficulties with pronunciation or eating. Dentures stay in place using a mild adhesive or suction, which attaches them to the gum ridge. Bridges are anchored to teeth on either side of the missing tooth or teeth. Implants, on the other hand, are anchored in the jawbone. The post of the implant fuses with the bone in your jaw, functioning just like the root of a natural tooth. 

Implants often are used to replace a single tooth, but if you have lost several teeth, you also have options. Implants are an effective way to hold bridges and dentures in place securely. Several posts are implanted in strategic locations. Once the posts have fused with the jawbone, the bridge or denture is secured to the posts. These appliances can be fixed in place or removable for easy cleaning. 

• Implants Maintain Bone Health

When you choose an implant, you are choosing an option which protects your natural bone health and facial appearance. When a tooth is lost, the jawbone beneath it can shrink over time. This process is called “resorption.” Bone loss can alter facial appearance, especially around the lips, cheeks, and profile. 

Why do we lose bone? The bone in our jaws stays healthy because the stimulation of chewing and biting encourages new bone cell production around the root. Without that stimulation, the jawbone doesn’t replace old bone cells as effectively, and gradually shrinks, even with a bridge or denture. Implants, on the other hand, provide the same stimulation to the bone that natural teeth and roots do, and bone cells regenerate just like they do with natural teeth.

• Implants Don’t Affect Surrounding Teeth

When you choose a fixed bridge to replace a missing tooth or teeth, the neighboring teeth must be shaped to hold the bridge attachment. This is done by removing some healthy tooth structure from each neighboring tooth. Retainer crowns are then placed on these teeth to hold the pontic, or replacement teeth, in position. 

Implants don’t require crowns or other anchoring mechanisms on surrounding teeth. What’s more, implants benefit the teeth around them by helping to preserve the shape and strength of the jawbone holding them in place. 

• Implants Last

Dentures and bridges can be a more cost-effective option initially, but they will need to be replaced every 5-10 years. Implants are the longest lasting tooth replacement. Many implants will last a lifetime. 

How to make sure your implant is successful? Look after your dental hygiene to prevent gum disease, a leading cause of tooth loss in adults. If you grind your teeth, talk to Dr. Sardzinski, Dr. Wilken, Dr. Stanley, Dr. Hanson and Dr. Heying about a nightguard. Wear a mouthguard when you play sports. Avoid biting into hard foods like ice and hard candies. Don’t smoke. In other words, protect your implants just like you protect your organic teeth.

• Implants Look Natural

For many of us, the realistic appearance of dental implants is the deciding factor. 

Dental implants are designed to look just like your natural teeth. The crown which sits atop the implant post is carefully fabricated to match the size, shape, and color of your surrounding teeth. You can eat, speak, and smile confidently once again.

If you’re considering tooth replacement, talk to the team at Blair Ridge Dental in Hiawatha, IA about which options are best for you. You might discover that a dental implant is the natural choice!

First word, first step, first day of school—these firsts are milestones every parent celebrates. And one of the earliest and most precious milestones is your baby’s first real smile! 

Keep that smile beaming and healthy from infancy to young adulthood with the help of dental milestones. These breakthrough events mark significant stages in oral development, and are a great guide to understanding, protecting, and supporting your child’s path to adult oral health.

• First Tooth

Baby’s first tooth often arrives around the age of six months. And this is the time to start cavity prevention, with twice daily gentle brushing with a soft-bristled, child-sized toothbrush. Talk to Dr. Sardzinski, Dr. Wilken, Dr. Stanley, Dr. Hanson and Dr. Heying or your child's pediatrician to learn how and when to brush and how much and what kind of toothpaste to use.

By the age of three, toddlers typically have all of their 20 baby teeth, and these little teeth are essential to children’s health. They help kids chew and eat, assist speech development and pronunciation, and act as placeholders so adult teeth can erupt in the proper place. Keep your child’s baby teeth their healthiest by partnering with the dental team at Blair Ridge Dental in Hiawatha, IA.

• First Visit to the Dentist

Once that first tooth has come in, or around age one, it’s time to bring your little one to the dentist for a first visit. Your dentist will do a careful exam to see if your child’s teeth and jaws are developing as they should, check the health of the teeth, and answer your questions about brushing, flossing, toothpaste, teething, pacifiers, thumb-sucking, or any other concerns. 

Early visits are important. They allow you and your child to establish a “dental home”: a place where the dental team is familiar and comforting, and where regular preventative care will help keep young smiles their healthiest.

• First Lost Tooth/First Permanent Tooth

Around age six, most children start to lose baby teeth, typically in the order in which they arrived. Losing a baby tooth is a big step for children and might be a bit scary. You can celebrate this milestone with a visit from the Tooth Fairy, or a certificate, or a new toothbrush in your child’s favorite color. 

As the permanent teeth come in, continue to encourage twice daily brushing and flossing, and consider proactive treatment with dental sealants. Even when children have learned to brush properly, and brush twice each day, it can be hard for kids to remove all the plaque and food particles from the grooved chewing surfaces on top of molars. That’s why molars are much more vulnerable to decay than any other teeth. 

Around the time your child’s first permanent molars erupt, the team at Blair Ridge Dental might suggest sealants. Sealants protect the chewing surfaces of the molars from food particle and plaque buildup. This safe and invisible protective coating, usually a plastic resin, is applied in the office and typically lasts from three to five years. 

• First Orthodontic Visit

Dentists and orthodontists recommend an orthodontic examination by age seven (or earlier, if you have any concerns). At this point, children have a mix of primary and permanent teeth, allowing an orthodontist to assess tooth spacing and alignment and the way the jaws fit together. 

Your orthodontist might find no issues with your child’s teeth or bite. Or, perhaps, follow-up appointments might be scheduled to determine if and when future treatment is advisable. Sometimes, because some problems can be treated more easily when your child is young, early intervention with a fixed or removeable appliance is recommended right away. 

Having an orthodontic plan in place helps ensure that children benefit from the most effective and timely treatment at any stage of their development.

• Orthodontic Treatment

Orthodontic treatment commonly begins in early adolescence (ten to 14) when most or all of the permanent teeth have erupted. The facial and jaw bones are still growing in preteens and young teens, which makes it easier to reposition teeth and guide jaw alignment.

More treatment options are available than ever before—and today’s braces, clear aligners, smaller and more comfortable appliances, and even 3D technology make treating malocclusions and misalignments more efficient than ever before.

A healthy bite and properly aligned teeth are a foundation of lasting oral health. Orthodontic treatment helps prevent decay, gum disease, jaw pain, and even early tooth loss. And, of course, the value of your child’s increased self-confidence is impossible to overestimate!

• Wisdom Teeth

Wisdom teeth, or third molars, generally start to erupt in the late teens or early twenties and often have a harmful effect on oral health.

Erupting or impacted wisdom teeth can push neighboring teeth out of position, damage adjacent tooth roots, and cause inflammation and infection in gum and bone around the wisdom tooth. For these reasons, preventative extraction is often recommended. 

If your teen shows any symptoms of erupting or impacted wisdom teeth—irritated, swollen, or bleeding gums, bad breath, jaw pain or swelling—a visit to the dentist is in order.

As parents, you do your best to guide your child’s journey from infancy to healthy adulthood. Each dental milestone marks a new stage in your child’s oral health journey, and new ways for you to encourage and protect that oral health. Use these milestones to set your child up for a lifetime of good dental habits—and a lifetime of healthy smiles!

The barbecue’s fired up. T-shirts and shorts are back in style. Sandy beaches and sidewalks are sizzling. Summer’s officially here, and it’s time to get back into hot weather mode. This means getting back into some healthy summer habits.

Be Ready to Hydrate!

Warm weather can lead to dehydration before you know it. And water does more than hydrate—it rinses away food particles after eating or snacking, neutralizes enamel-eroding acids in the mouth, and helps us keep up healthy levels of saliva. 

• A reusable water bottle is a summer shopping list must. When you’re out walking, hiking, exercising, or camping, you can’t always be sure you’ll have fresh water available. Fill your water bottle before you leave home—you’ll help yourself stay hydrated, save money, and protect the environment, too!
• Go light on the sports drinks and sodas when planning your summer menus. They’re often filled with sugars and acids—two very unhealthy ingredients for your teeth. 

Restock Your Sunscreen

Sunscreen helps protect skin of all shades and all ages. Exposure to ultraviolet rays is known to cause skin cancer and premature aging. Lip tissue is thin and delicate, especially at risk from the sun’s damaging UV rays. 

• Check your sunscreen for its expiration date. Protective sunscreens and lip balms lose effectiveness once that date has passed.
• Some sunscreens are designed for use on lips. If yours isn’t, look for a protective lip balm. All of your sunscreens and balms should have an SPF (Sun Protection Factor) of 30 or higher.
• Bring your sunscreen and balm with you when you’re out and about, and reapply every two hours, or sooner if you’re eating, drinking, or getting wet.

Prep for Summer Adventures

If you’re travelling this summer, make sure the right dental supplies are part of your gear. A travel size toothbrush and toothpaste, a well-ventilated toothbrush case, dental floss, and your dentist’s emergency contact information are basic necessities. Once you have the basics, you can tailor your kit to your summer plans:

• Flying? Make sure every liquid, gel, or aerosol you’ll need is the proper size for carry-on flight rules, 3.4 oz (100 ml) or less. Toothpaste and mouthwash are included in these categories, so look for travel sizes in your favorites. 
• Going overseas? Don’t forget plug adaptors or voltage converters if needed for your electric toothbrush.
• Camping? An emergency kit with cotton rolls, over-the counter pain relief, oral pain relief gel, dental wax (for damaged braces or a broken tooth), and even temporary fillings and a tooth preservation kit can be crucial in case of unexpected dental injuries.

Make Sure Dental Care Is on Your Summer Calendar

Laid-back summer days are the best, but laid-back dental care really isn’t! Follow your healthy dental routine even during the lazy days of summer.

• Keep up with your brushing and flossing—brush two minutes twice each day with a fluoride toothpaste, and floss at least once a day.
• If you’re planning a trip, don’t ignore warning signs. If you have tooth pain or sensitivity, see your dentist to treat any problems before you’re cruising at 30,000 feet or enjoying a remote campout miles from anywhere.
• Make sure you keep up with your scheduled exams and cleanings. That’s the best way to ensure year-round dental health!

Whether you’re basking in the warm outdoor weather, relaxing in the shade with a cool drink and a good book, on the road to adventure, or wherever your summer plans take you, we hope these easy tips will help you create a summer filled with bright, healthy smiles.

Since the introduction of the power toothbrush in the 1960s, this tool has undergone many technological advances, from design and bristle motions to rotation oscillation and sonic vibration.

What is rotation oscillation? That’s when the head of the toothbrush alternately rotates in one direction and then the other. Power toothbrushes can deliver up to 50,000 strokes per minute, which is much more effective than the average 300 strokes per minute with a manual toothbrush.

A smaller brush head is available for hard-to-reach areas, which is a good alternative for small mouths. The brush heads are replaceable and should be changed every three to six months. Each family member should have his or her own brush head while sharing the base motor. What a great deal! Check the handle size. A large handle is better for members of the household with arthritis, children, or family with other physical disabilities.

A rechargeable toothbrush is ideal. It should deliver enough power on a full charge for one week of brushing.

We recommend you brush for a minimum of two minutes. Some electric toothbrushes include a signal you can hear, such as a beep every 30 seconds, to indicate it's time to switch to a different area of the mouth. Others sound an alert after the full two minutes has elapsed.

Will an electric toothbrush harm the teeth or gums? Studies indicate that people tend to apply more damaging pressure to their teeth and gums during manual brushing than when they use an electric toothbrush. If you experience tooth sensitivity, choose a model with pressure sensors that stop the toothbrush any time you press too hard.

Who would benefit from an electric toothbrush? Everyone! Consumers with a physical disability may have specific needs that power toothbrushes can address. Children also tend to maintain better oral health hygiene when they use an automatic toothbrush. Plus, many of them find it fun to brush!

Automatic toothbrushes really do remove debris better than the old-fashioned way. You may have heard the term “biofilm.” Better known as plaque when it occurs in the mouth, biofilm is the debris and bacteria that cause infections to your teeth. It regenerates quickly, so healthy habits are the best defense for a healthier you! With a healthier mouth, you face a lower risk of gum disease and other conditions like heart disease: mouth health has been linked to heart health.

When you're ready to make your decisions, be a wise comparison shopper. Consult with Dr. Sardzinski, Dr. Wilken, Dr. Stanley, Dr. Hanson and Dr. Heying at Blair Ridge Dental to decide what is best for you!