I see at least 6 patients per day that have gum recession around the teeth, and the exposed necks of the teeth are worn in. Sometimes these are sensitive, but not always. This type of tooth wear is difficult to treat and will quickly cause a lot of problems. The most frequent causes of this problem are:
There has been an epidemic of tooth decay in infants. Much of it comes from the baby bottle. The American association of pediatric dentistry now recommends the child's first dental visit to be at age one. I sit knee to knee with the parent or caretaker with the child on our laps. Besides an examination, I review the diet, oral hygiene techniques, etc.
Yesterday I treated a patient with a severe toothache with a root canal treatment. Root canal problems can cause enormous pain. The good news is that I was able to quickly get him out of pain. The bad news is that if he had let me take care of the deep decay in that tooth 6 months before, when I saw the problem, he would not have suffered with pain or needed a root canal treatment.
I am treating a 75 year old lady who is missing half her teeth. The remaining ones are worn down and darkened. I am making porcelain crowns to give her beautiful, natural looking front teeth. I will be making precision partial dentures to replace her missing back teeth. Most of the teeth now have temporaries on them while the lab work is being done. She can't believe how nice everything looks already. This was a major decision for her, and I am so happy to see how thrilled she already is.
I attended a course this week on the effects of periodontal gum disease on other diseases. The latest research shows that just about every disease is greatly worsened by inflammation, and the most common cause of inflammation in the body is periodontal gum disease. Uncontrolled diabetes often becomes controllable after gum treatment.
