Braces are an uncomfortable rite of passage for a large percentage of children and teens in the United States. No one likes to have pieces of metal glued onto their teeth, wires poking into their gums, or restrictions placed on their eating choices. A new product on the market can deliver rapid results and lasting satisfaction.

Space Maintainers Laboratories is proud to offer

One of the biggest problems observed in adult dental patients?

Abnormal wear patterns. They eventually cause a decrease in the vertical dimension of the patient—wearing down teeth to the point where full mouth reconstruction is inevitable. The solution? Prevent the problem from ever occurring in the first place. Deliver an orthotic or splint early on as part of proactive patient care protocol."

— Dr. Rob Veis

The TALON SPLINT

Combines the comfortable fit and positive retention of a soft splint with the adjustable occlusal surface and superior protection of a hard splint. Excellent retention without the use of metal clasps. The Talon Splint’s hard occlusal surface makes precise adjustment easy – ensuring a proper proprioceptive response with the opposing dentition. No speech-inhibiting lingual extensions, either.

Most popular because of its aesthetics, its strength, and its ability to last throughout a child's often-tumultuous growth period, the Groper Appliance is ideal for early treatment and correction. Invented by a pediatric dentist for pediatric patients, this simple appliance maintains the space created by early loss of the primary anteriors. It delivers a unique and aesthetically pleasing appearance while maintaining arch length and preventing both mesial and lingual tipping of the molars.

SML has set the standard for excellence when it comes to the Groper, and it can be fabricated on crowns or bands. The anterior bridge is made extra strong by attaching each tooth separately to a specially designed, stainless steel pad. Each unit is then welded and soldered to the arch wire. Within a week, the tissue is healed and the patient is able to maintain normal speech, function and esthetics.

Replacement teeth are easily adjusted, shaded, added to and repaired — no having to replace the appliance if a patient chips or breaks a tooth.

When a patient begins to lose teeth or bone structure, it is time to have a conversation about dentures. Most seniors are already familiar with traditional removable dentures and may have also heard from friends and neighbors about permanent dentures. In your conversation with your patient, outline the pros and cons of each option.

Most seniors choose removable dentures, because they cost less than permanent dentures. They may, however, be trading away a lot comfort and chewing ability in exchange for a few extra dollars in their pocket. Removable dentures may feel uncomfortable or become loose during the day. Many seniors with removable dentures also struggle to bite into firm surfaces, like a crisp apple, when wearing removable dentures.

Permanent dentures are more invasive and expensive than removable dentures.  

If you are opening a new dental, cosmetic dental, or orthodontic office, you surely have a lot on your mind. You have equipment to purchase, staff to hire and train, walls to paint, and customers to find! But don’t forget that this is also a time when you need to start developing relationships with important vendors. Perhaps no vendor is more important than a lab that will create appliances for your patients. After all, you can’t treat patients effectively if you can’t fit them with space maintainers, splints, bridges, retainers, arch development appliances, and more.   

A decision by the North Carolina state dental board recently went in front of the nation’s highest court. In 2006, the dental board sent cease-and-desist letters to mall kiosks that offered teeth whitening services. As a result, North Carolina residents were forced to have their teeth whitened only in dental offices at significantly higher costs.

In 2010, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission picked up the case, and it eventually landed at the Supreme Court. On February 25, the court rule 6-3 against the board, stating that the board had violated anti-trust laws. In the majority opinion, Justice Anthony Kennedy chided board members – mostly composed of practicing dentists -- for “confusing their own interests with the state’s policy goals.” 

The three dissenting justices, Samuel Alito, Antonin Scalia, and Clarence Thomas brought up concerns that this decision may hurt the ability of states to regulate professionals in the future.

Though dentists in North Carolina must now contend with non-licensed sellers of teeth-whitening services, they can still offer a wide variety of other services that only a dentist can provide.   

New dentistry products appear on the market every year. Swing by any dental tradeshow, and you’ll hear about the latest and greatest technology, amazing new materials, and products that will drastically enhance your patient outcomes. With all these new whiz-bang products available, is there any room for a classic?

The Hawley Retainer is one of the oldest retainers used in dentistry. It was originally popularized in 1858 by Dr. Alfred Kingsley over 150 years ago. This simple-yet-elegant device has withstood the test of time, and is still an incredibly popular dentistry product to this day.

Almost anyone who has had the joy of wearing braces will be the proud owner of a Hawley Retainer when they get their braces off. The retainer is made by a dental laboratory and customized for each individual’s mouth. A Hawley retainer’s job is to maintain the alignment created by the braces while giving the teeth enough space to shift ever so slightly and settle.   

We’ve all done it – pulled a new shirt or blouse out of the bag, looked around for a pair of scissors, and then bitten through the plastic thingy that holds the price tag. In fact, we’re all guilty of using our teeth like pliers or scissors. If you’re one of the few people who hasn’t used their teeth to free your new purchase from a price tag, maybe you’ve used your teeth to tear open a bag of potato chips or even loosen a particularly stubborn cap on a bottle of nail polish.

Teeth are tools. They cut, mash, and grind food to make it easier to digest. That doesn’t mean they should also be prying caps off of beer bottles or straightening a bent fork. If you’ve found yourself performing these bad teeth habits, you can be sure your clients are doing the same. Make sure to remind your clients that treating teeth like pliers or scissors puts unwanted stress on the teeth and can even lead to chipping or fractures.  

You may have clients who come to you with concerns that their teeth are still moving even though they had braces as a kid. This is not an uncommon occurrence for adults in their late twenties. Several different factors can cause the teeth to move even after they’ve been corrected in the past, including:   

If you have patients who play contact sports like hockey and football or who grind their teeth, you have likely recommended that they use a customized mouth guard. These great and simple devices can protect the teeth from a crushing tackle or from getting worn down by unconscious grinding, but they may actually present a danger if they aren’t cleaned regularly.

When patients take their mouth guards out, they can transfer bacteria and germs onto the mouth guard without even realizing it. When they put the mouth guard back in their mouth, those germs and bacteria get a free passage right into the lungs!

Keeping a customized mouth guard clean is simple and there are several ways to do it: