Save on CEREC Restorations and 3D Cone Beam Scans

Hi! I hope the summer has been treating you well! We’ve been slammed at the office and I’ve fallen behind on our newsletter, but I have some exciting news to share that you might be able to benefit from.

(As a side note, most of this pertains to people in our area. I will be writing another article in the coming days with some news about the FDA and mercury fillings, as well as some new dental tips, so stay tuned for that email in the next week or so).

We recently invested in some exciting new equipment for our practice that allows us to improve the services we can provide and to provide some of those services at a lower cost. To celebrate, we are offering our friends and patients an opportunity to save a good chuck of change on some dental work. What do I mean? Well first, let me explain what we got:

WHAT WE GOT:
We have integrated a 3D Cone Beam scanner into our practice. As many of our patients already know, we have long supported and recommended cone beam scans to help improve diagnostics while decreasing your exposure to radiation. But it was often difficult to schedule an appointment for such images and could be cost prohibitive. Now, with a machine in our practice, we are able to provide high quality scans in less time and often for lower costs.

HOW YOU BENEFIT:
3D Cone Beam scans provide the highest resolution scans possible at the lowest possible radiation levels. This means that we can pinpoint problems easier and be more precise in our diagnosis. These scans are infinitely more detailed than any other dental radiography technology on the market and are available in very few dental practices in the country.

WHAT WE GOT:
After being a “CEREC” doctor for almost a decade, I understand the value of what CEREC brings to a practice and a patient. That’s why we recently upgraded to the latest and greatest machine, the CEREC AC. This machine allows us to take digital impressions for restorations (no more gagging on impressions!) and make precise restorations that look excellent, fit perfectly, and last a long time — all out of biocompatible, metal-free materials and all in very little time.

HOW YOU BENEFIT:
By upgrading our CEREC machine, we are able to do same-day restorations on almost all procedures, including inlays, onlays, crowns, and bridges, often at a lower cost to you. Restorations look outstanding, last a long time, and are biocompatible and metal-free. Fewer visits and a lower cost… that’s a pretty good benefit!

What’s in it all for you? If you have any work you need to have done (do you have a chipped tooth? Do you need a crown replaced? Do you have a missing tooth and need a bridge?) we are offering 13% off on the first CEREC restoration you have done in our practice in July. The offer includes inlays, onlays, bridges, and crowns done on our new CEREC. It’s good for one restoration. It’s good for the first 8 people who respond and schedule an appointment for the month of July.

Keep in mind, we are rapidly filling our July calendar (we have a few appointments left at the end of the month) and we do not plan to extend this offer. So if you have work you need done, please call soon and make sure you get scheduled while we still have spots available and to ensure you are one the first 8 people.

When you call, tell Sasja that you are responding to my email offer and would like to be scheduled in July (you can reach her at 888-825-5351. If she doesn’t pick up right away, she’s probably on the other line. Feel free to leave a message and she’ll call you back as soon as possible).

If you don’t need any work done or you aren’t in our area, I appreciate you reading this far into my email and I hope you’re enjoying your summer. As I mentioned at the beginning of this letter, I promise to have some information about the FDA’s about-face on mercury amalgam fillings as well as some new dental tips and info in the next few days, so stay tuned.

Thanks!
Dr. Marvin

The Difference Between Dental Bridges

What’s a dental bridge? It’s a single unit that replaces one or more missing teeth by attaching a prosthetic to teeth adjacent to the missing tooth (or teeth). Pretty simple right? You’re missing a tooth, so you put in a bridge. End of story. Right…..?

Well, not exactly. Not all bridges are made the same. Some are made from noble metals (like gold), some are made from “silver” metals, some are made from metal with white porcelain fused on top (these are the most common currently), and some are biocompatible and completely metal free.

Then there’s the “construction” type. Do the attachments act like crowns and completely cover the adjacent teeth? Does the dentist cut away a large portion of healthy teeth on either side in order to place a bridge? Are there more conservative bridges that conserve more teeth? The answer is “yes” to all of the above.

Choosing the Right Bridge for You:

At The Center for Natural Dentistry in Encinitas, we only place metal-free, biocompatible bridges. We are a holistic dental practice in San Diego County, and our focus is on doing work that’s good for your mouth and your body. That means that we always strive to create the strongest, most conservative bridges possible. In most cases, this results in a biocompatible onlay bridge or inlay bridge. While metal bridges are certainly strong, they can actually be too strong, causing the tooth to weaken under the bridge and eventually leading to the loos of the tooth (does this pattern sound familiar: You have a cavity, fill it with an amalgam filling. Decay forms around the filling. Filling is redone. More decay. Root Canal. Root Canal fails, so you get a crown. Crown fails, so you have the tooth pulled and get a metal bridge. Teeth holding the bridge decay and need to be pulled. Metal dentures replace the missing teeth. Metal often causes future dental problems and can sometimes lead to other systemic and acute health problems).

So what’s the answer? A bridge that is strong, forgiving, esthetically pleasing, metal-free, and doesn’t unnecessarily and expressively remove healthy teeth.

That’s exactly what we do at our Encinitas holistic dental practice. We make strong, metal-free onlay and inlay bridges that conserve surrounding teeth because they require less material to anchor the bridge in. We make some of these bridges in a high-quality laboratory and some on our Cerec machine on the office. The result is less healthy tooth loss and a long-lasting, strong, biocompatible bridge.

So if inlay and onlay bridges are better, why do they sometimes cost more? Well, there are a variety of factors that go into the cost of a bridge. Materials used is a large part of it. The difficulty in properly placing a bridge so it will last and won’t create decay in the adjacent teeth is also part of it. The amount of skill and experience required to place an inlay bridge is often higher than that for a traditional bridge. As the old saying goes: you get what you pay for. If you want a bridge that will last a long time, will create a solid biting surface, won’t do necessary damage to the adjacent teeth, won’t cause harm to your overall health, and looks natural in your mouth (both along the gumline and in in conjunction with the surrounding teeth), then this is probably the type of bridge you are looking for.

Some pictures are below to illustrate exactly what an inlay bridge. This is one of the biocompatible inlay bridges made at our Encinitas holistic dental practice.

Why Are Root Canals Bad?

At The Center for Natural Dentistry, we do not recommend root canals or root canal therapy. Why? Because more often than not, root canals result in an infection. While that infection may never cause a noticeable health problem, a substantial number of people will suffer adverse affects. The risks of root canal therapy do not outweigh the “reward” of keeping a dead tooth in your mouth.

So why do so many root canals result in infection? Simply put, the roots aren’t fully sterilized and not 100% filled. This results in pockets of potentially harmful bacteria that are “sealed” into the tooth, away from blood-flow that fights infections. In short, it becomes a haven for bad germs.

Rather than write another article laden with facts on root canals (we’ve already written plenty of them, just check out under The Root Canal Controversy section of our website (we talk about Alternatives to Root Canals, Infections from Root Canals, Sargenti Paste, Ozone Therapy for Root Canals, and much more.), I want to give you some real-life examples of what we’re talking about. Below I’ve posted just a few of the pictures we’ve taken of extracted teeth. Most of these were taken in just the past few days… and we have plenty more to choose from. In some cases, the patient had some sort of pain or discomfort. In others, no symptoms were noticed by the patient. In our practice, about 9 our of 10 extractions performed on root canal treated teeth have obvious infections like the ones you see below.

Enjoy.
Dr. Marvin.

Ozone Therapy as Treatment in Dentistry

In the past few months we have received several questions about ozone therapy for dental problems. A few patients have even installed ozonators in their homes to help with various medical conditions.

While I can’t speak of ozone in other medical fields, ozone therapy in dentistry is coming of age. It is used to disinfect teeth with cavities and is used to disinfect the root canal prior to filling it. While their is promising research to suggest it works, the difficult question is how long will the tooth or root canal stay disinfected.

Ozone treatment for cavities: There are currently three ozone machines that can disinfect tooth decay beneath the enamel. Certain protocols call for two or three one minute applications to kill the bacteria. Heavy remineralization therapy is also recommended.

Ozone treatment for root canal therapy and disinfection: The same ozone machines are being used to disinfect roots after cleaning out the nerves and blood vessels. There’s a problem with this scenario however. Root canal therapy is like putting a cork on an infection. Many bacteria are persistent and can flourish in the harshest conditions, including a root canal.

Dentin in teeth are made of tubes called dentinal tubules. If you line up the tubules end to end for the average tooth, it would extend 3 miles. What that means is that we expect a disinfection procedure during root canal therapy to clean 3 miles of tubes that may contain bacteria. Studies have shown that ozone (and laser therapy in dentistry) can disinfect canals and keep them clean for about a year. But after that first year, bacteria finds a back into the tubes. These bacteria can change from aerobic to anaerobic bacteria. Since there’s no blood flow after filling the root canal space, there’s no way for the body to fight these bacteria. They produce toxins and can release these toxins out of the root (although not through the root canal).

Also, after you fill the root canal with gutta percha or even biocalex or endocal, there’s no way of going back in to re-disinfect the tooth without “opening the tooth” once again. Who would want to have this procedure — root canal therapy — done every year?

You also have to consider what’s happening to the bacteria surrounding the tooth root and in the bone. People, including dentists, forget about the tissues surrounding the tooth, instead focusing on what they can see, the teeth. These infections are sometimes more harmful than the bugs in the dentinal tubes. The abscess or infection in the bone can get into the bloodstream and travel elsewhere. It can also cause disturbances in the meridians (causing problems in distant organs).

Ozone and laser therapy do little to help with these infections (cavitations).

The only incidence where I’d routinely use ozone or lasers for root canal therapy is when the immune system is working 100% efficiently, the tooth can’t easily be replaced, there’s no infections around the root or if it is a front tooth (central incisor). Even then, I’d still recommend an extraction for long term health reasons. (and none this speaks to the potential side-effects of ozone therapy, which are still being researched and discovered).

In summary, ozone and lasers would be good for beneath the surface cavity disinfections, but not for long term root canal disinfections. The technology is promising but if overall health is your primary goal, the avoidance of root canal therapy through prevention is the key. Or if your choice lies between root canal therapy or extraction, choose extraction.

Mercury (Silver) Fillings: A Very Serious Danger

Episode 19 of Dangers in Dentistry originally aired on KPRZ in San Diego.

Is your health on the line? Do you have any of these serious illnesses: paralysis, Parkinson’s, hyperthyroidism, Lupus, irritable bowel syndrome, diabetes? How about impotency or mood swings? Do you suffer from more common conditions like fatigue, skin discoloration (red cheeks, nose, fingers or toes) or headaches? Each of these conditions may be linked to the presence of mercury in your body. Did you know that according to the World Health Organization, the number one source of mercury exposure comes from mercury dental amalgam fillings?

Mercury-amalgam fillings, more commonly known as silver fillings, have been shown to release mercury into your body the entire time they’re in your mouth. Mercury is a dangerous neuro-toxin that can endanger your well-being and your health, which is why mercury has already been banned from thermometers and classrooms in the United States and why mercury amalgam fillings have been banned from use in several European countries. Are your fillings putting you at risk?

In this episode of Dangers in Dentistry, Dr. Marvin discusses the very real consequences of mercury poisoning, as well as the safe and proper steps you can take in order to lessen your exposure to this toxic metal. Learn the information your should know in order to protect yourself in this week’s episode of Dangers in Dentistry, with America’s Holistic Dentist, Dr. Marvin.

Enjoy!
Dr. Marvin
San Diego, Encinitas Holistic and Natural Dentist

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