Around the age of six, most children begin a normal and interesting life process. They may notice that some of their teeth (usually the central and lateral incisors) begin to feel loose. Dentists refer to this growth period as the mixed dentition stage, because over the next six or seven years, their pediatric patients dentition will consist of a mix of baby (deciduous) teeth and permanent teeth -- as well as gaps where deciduous teeth have fallen out and where permanent teeth haven’t yet completed eruption.

This experience can be both exciting and scary for your young patients. There is usually the thrilling prospect of a financial reward from the Tooth Fairy for lost teeth, but also fear and dread of the discomfort involved.

When your young patients are close to reaching the mixed dentition stage, it is important to encourage them to continue brushing well -- especially in the back as their molars emerge. Remind parents that baby teeth will fall out on their own with little pain or effort. It is not necessary to push or pull teeth out before they are ready. You may also need to let parents know that most dental corrections should not be started until all of the permanent teeth have grown in. 

Splint therapy is often the means of treatment which, initiated early, can provide your patients with the best long term care, save them money…and make you some, as well. The dentist plays a key role at three procedural levels: screening, diagnosis, and treatment.

A properly designed splint can:

• Break up doodling patterns and cover facets of wear
• Protect teeth from abnormal forces
• Protect the bony and soft tissue supportive structures against abnormal forces
• Introduce an optimum occlusal position
• Deprogram and musculature and reorganize neuromuscular reflex activity
• Encourage normal muscle function
• Alleviate any occlusal stresses and provide anterior guidance to posterior teeth
• Establish a new vertical relationship
• Protect teeth from diurnal and nocturnal bruxism
• Provide a more stable or functional joint position
• Alleviate occlusal stresses to the anterior teeth by controlling the vertical dimension

For more information on splints and other dental appliances contact SMLglobal.

According to the National Sleep Foundation, as many as 8% of adults grind their teeth at night and over a third of parents report that their children exhibit symptoms of teeth grinding (bruxism). Teeth grinding isn’t just a bad habit. It can wear down enamel, cause cracks, or even loosen and destroy teeth. It also often causes jaw pain, tight jaw muscles, and headaches.

And there’s still a lot we don’t know about the causes of bruxism. Some cases may result from malocclusion, but new research suggests that many can be traced back to stress, anxiety, and even sleep apnea and fatigue.

As a dentists or orthodontist, you aren’t in a position to help your patients balance their stressful lives, but you can help to keep them from grinding their teeth in their sleep. One great option is a simple-yet-effective dental appliance called the Oakes Splint U. This appliance is specifically designed to prevent clenching and grinding while your patient is asleep (or awake).   

We all use appliances intuitively. When a patient needs an implant after losing a tooth, we intuitively know that space maintenance is called for. We know that it is necessary to provide the patient with a means for preserving esthetic integrity. We know how to place a temporary partial.  

The foundation of any removable orthodontic appliance is the clasp. It holds the appliance in place so that the appliance can perform its function. Ideally, you want to ensure that the clasp on any dental appliance manufactured for your patients is unobtrusive, does not impinge on soft tissue, maintains close contact with the tooth, and, of course, provides good retention. It is also important that the clasp not interfere with jaw growth and the eruption of teeth.

Dentists and orthodontists should be familiar with a variety of clasps:

• Jackson’s Clasp
• Schwarz Clasp
• Duyzing Clasp
• Ball End Clasp
• Delta Clasp
• Eyelet Clasp
• C Clasp
• Triangular Clasp
• South End Clasp
• Crozat clasp

If you perform cosmetic dental procedures, you may want to consider improving alignment pre-procedure to yield even better results. Many adult patients don’t need something as drastic as braces or Invisalign. The Inman Aligner is a great alternative -- ideal for correcting mild-to-moderate crowding, protrusions, rotations, and cross-bites.

The Inman Aligner design incorporates nickel titanium coil springs to power two aligner bows. These bows gently oppose each other to move the teeth into their new, straighter position – usually in six to 18 weeks. The force of the aligner bows are active over a large range of movement, yielding straighter teeth and a more beautiful smile in less than two months prior to cosmetic procedure.

By the time everything is done, your patients will feel more confident and more beautiful than ever before!

Contact SML (Space Maintainers Laboratories) today to order Inman Aligners for your patients.   

Whether it’s 24 hours a day or just at night or just once a week, the length of time required for retainer wear is different for everyone. And eventually that can change, too.

PROBLEM:
With a vacuum-formed appliance that fits over the occlusal surface (regardless of whether the retainer is an upper or a lower), the patient’s teeth don’t fit together as they should. This can lead to bruxing which can result in a broken retainer or unwanted tooth movement.

SOLUTION:
An esthetically pleasing (invisible) appliance that does not cover the occlusal surface – yet fits better and is strong enough (and rigid enough) to maintain optimal tooth stability.
 
The COR Functional Retainer
COR stands for “Cosmetic Orthodontic Retention.” Excellent for use immediately after orthodontics, the COR appliance is the ideal solution for keeping teeth straighter and stronger than ever before.  
    
Perhaps most significantly, it delivers premier stability and permits totally natural bite function because the biting surfaces are not covered.

If a posterior cross-bite isn’t recognized and corrected early, it could lead to a lifetime of unpleasant issues - like a skeletal deformity, obstructed airways, or even TMJ. If you notice that a young patient demonstrates a bilateral posterior cross-bite, make sure to address it immediately!

In many cases, the cause of a bilateral posterior cross-bite is related to an underdeveloped maxilla. You may discover that your patient relies on an abnormal tongue posture or has adopted an irregular swallow pattern. A bilateral posterior cross-bite may even be related to airways obstructed due to allergies.

In all of these cases, you will likely see good results by using the Standard Schwarz with Occlusal Coverage. Its smooth posterior bite plane gives posterior teeth plenty of space to move out of the occlusal interference. To use the appliance, simply turn the expansion screw one quarter each week to apply a slow and constant pressure on the patient’s teeth and bone.   

Dentists, orthodontists, and cosmetic dentists are a busy lot. And when it comes to dental appliances, shopping around for the best quality, the best pricing and the best customer service, can just seem like a lot more hard work. Chances are, you’ve probably found a dental lab that is “good enough”  -- meaning they don’t mess up enough or over charge enough to justify the added effort of finding someone else.

This attitude is understandable, but you may be doing yourself a disservice by sticking with the status quo. Admittedly, it can involve some extra work to search for other dental laboratories, but if you find a vendor who can offer you better products, better service, and better pricing, it could add up to a substantial difference for your office.

Think about what it would be like to never have to send back an appliance that wasn’t to spec…or how great it would be to save costs on every order…or the ultimate benefits of being able to invest those cost savings back into your practice?

Babies and young children suck their thumbs to relieve stress, boredom, and anxiety. For most, this habit will naturally lessen as they age.  If a child continues sucking their thumb past the point at which their permanent teeth start to grow in, this habit can result in malocclusion and potentially serious tissue damage.

As a dental professional, you are counted upon to help advise parents on how to eliminate this behavior. Advise may simply not be enough.   Several different appliances have been developed to make thumb sucking uncomfortable or painful for children. We recommend something a little different (and a little less intrusive) – the Blue Grass Appliance.