November 2015

Short term sensitivity and what causes it

Here at our practice in TW20, our Egham dentists provide a high standard of cosmetic and general dentistry for all of our patients. One of the most common procedures we carry out is fixing a dental crown. Crowns are prosthetic devices which are placed on natural teeth, or implants by a dentist and cemented in place using high strength dental adhesive. We often use crowns to cover up a partial tooth, damaged tooth, or to cover a dental implant. Bridges are often used if teeth are missing and are attached to the teeth either side of the space where the tooth is missing. The benefits of crowns and bridges are extensive and include: ●     Strengthening a partial or damaged tooth ●     Improving the appearance of a tooth ●     Improving the shape of a tooth ●     Improving the alignment of a tooth ●     Preventing teeth shifting when other teeth are missing

Crown Sensitivity

When our Egham dentists perform this treatment, you may find you have some slight tooth sensitivity afterwards. There are lots of different things that can affect your likelihood of getting sensitivity in the lead up to the procedure and during the procedure itself. Here are some of the main reasons that this can occur:

The Bite Isn't Quite Right

Dental care advice for expectant mums in Egham.

Our Egham dentist is family friendly, which means we get patients coming into us at all stages of life, including pregnancy. Surprisingly, many women don't initially consider their oral care a priority when they become pregnant, possibly because there is so much focus on what to eat, getting enough rest and of course, preparing for the baby's arrival. If this sound like you, don't worry, your local dental practice in TW20 is here to help. The more information you have, the more able you'll be to keep your teeth healthy and clean throughout all three trimesters. Caring for your teeth throughout pregnancy is really important. Oral issues can affect your general health, and it's the same the other way around too; so pregnancy or side effects of pregnancy can cause issues with your teeth and gums. Gum disease is a problematic oral issue that should be a particular concern to ladies in pregnancy, as some studies have shown it can influence the likelihood of a premature birth, or a child born below a healthy weight. During pregnancy, regular checkups with your friendly Egham dentist, combined with lots of information, awareness and excellent oral hygiene habits make for the ideal approach to your oral health care.


Healthy foods for your kids dental care!

Here at our family friendly Egham dentist, we take great pride in welcoming all members of the family, ensuring everyone, no matter what their age, gets fantastic oral care and leaves our practice smiling. When children are growing, their teeth are at a particularly sensitive time and oral health is really important. For this reason, it's so important parents do as much as possible to ensure their child has a healthy attitude to their oral health routine. Part of this comes from brushing, but a large part of it also comes from a healthy attitude to food and drink. There are so many adverts around promoting unhealthy food, it can be a real nightmare to get children to want anything other than sugary foods sometimes. One great way to help with that is to ensure the food we give them to take to school is tasty and healthy. Cooked school meals are getting healthier, but packed lunches aren't under the same guidelines so they can be more difficult to monitor. It is tricky but it can be done (with perseverance and creativity!) The main attitude you should have is to make a bright looking lunch box with a wide range of different foods for your child to try, so they never get bored. Here are some great suggestions:


Children who are growing will need lots of energy rich foods. Slow release carbs are ideal choices and can be combined with proteins or veggies to make delicious combinations. ●     Bread - opt for multi-grain or granary and try different types like pittas, wraps, rye and sourdough ●     Savoury muffins - a savoury muffin like a cheese and broccoli muffin can be a great way to get nutrients like calcium and vitamin C into your child ●     Crackers/ crisp breads - children love different textures, so these will go down a treat. Just be sure to opt for rye crackers or oatcakes over starchy cheese crackers which are bad for the teeth


How the condition of your mouth reflects your general health.

Our Egham dentist focuses on providing efficient, professional, modern dentistry for everyone who attends our practice. Whether it's advanced cosmetic dentistry, or a simple scale and polish, we ensure every patient gets the detailed, thorough treatment they need. A large part of our job at the surgery is performing oral health checks. We will do this when you first register with us and when you come for checkups, and we will look for specific symptoms if you raise a concern with us. We are also trained to identify certain signs and symptoms if we see them, regardless of what we are treating at the time. For example; you may be having a routine extraction with us but we notice a sign or symptom of something unrelated in your mouth. If this happens we will discuss what we have found at the earliest convenient time and talk about treatment options with you. So, with this in mind, you can feel reassured that we are always aware of your overall oral health to ensure that if you do have something that needs addressing, we can diagnose it and help you get it treated. You might also be interested to know, when we examine your mouth and surrounding areas we are also looking for signs and symptoms for issues that are not related to your oral health. There are lots of serious health conditions that can be spotted during an oral health examination, so visiting us at our Egham dentist isn't just important for your smile, it's useful in terms of your overall health. Here are just some serious health conditions we can spot when we examine your mouth:

Acid Reflux

If your bottom teeth are showing signs of erosion this can be a sign of acid reflux.

Crohn's Disease

Here are some tooth facts you probably don't know!

Here at our Egham dentist, we are genuinely passionate about teeth. Having studied them for years, you get to really appreciate how incredible they are, and the amazing things they can do. When you think about the pleasure you get from biting into a crunchy piece of food, from smiling at someone who you think is amazing, or even from just chewing your food - you start to realise how important your teeth really are. More often than not we do take our teeth for granted, until we experience issues with them or lose them, realising how much they really do matter. With good oral hygiene, good habits and regular visits to our dentist in TW20, you shouldn't have to know how it feels to lose your teeth, but with these 5 awesome facts about teeth you are sure to appreciate them that bit more by the end of this article!

1. Whitening Wasn't Enough For The Mayans

In modern times, we love getting our teeth whitened and straightened in the quest for the perfect celebrity smile. However, the Mayans went a bit further, opting for a true set of sparklers. Bejeweled teeth were common for the Mayans, and they used their version of what would now be a dentist's drill to create holes in which a jewel would then be inserted. Because of the different evidence showing the Mayans extensive interaction and awareness of their teeth, it is thought that they were actually skilled dentists of their time.

2. Sharing Is Caring

6% of the population would share their toothbrush with a celebrity. 7% with a friend, 18% with our child and 24% with our partner. The other 45% of us simply don't share! We don't recommend it!

3. Toothache Pain Relief Used To Be Terrifying