Posts for: June, 2017
If you had chicken pox as a child, you're at higher risk for a painful viral infection later in life called shingles. Besides a painful skin rash and other symptoms that can develop, shingles could also affect your dental care.
About 90% of children contract chicken pox, a disease caused by the varicella zoster virus (VZV), which usually clears up on its own. But later in life, usually after age 50, about a quarter to a third of chicken pox patients will develop shingles.
The onset of shingles usually produces an itching or burning sensation on the skin that's either numb or overly sensitive to the touch. A red rash may ensue with crusty lesions, accompanied sometimes by pain, fever and fatigue. The rash often forms a belt-like or striped pattern along one side of the face or body.
For most patients this painful rash is the extent of their symptoms. But women who are pregnant, patients undergoing cancer treatment or people with compromised immune systems are at risk for more serious complications if they contract the disease. It's important for these at-risk patients to obtain a vaccination, as well as avoid contact with anyone with shingles.
Which brings us to your dental care: in its early stages shingles can be contagious, the virus passing to others through skin contact or by airborne respiratory secretions. That's why it's important if you're currently experiencing a shingles episode that you let us know before undergoing any kind of dental work.Â Even a routine teeth cleaning with an ultrasonic device could disrupt the virus and increase the chances of it spreading to someone else. We may need to postpone dental work until the virus is under control.
Antiviral drugs like acyclovir or famciclovir are highly effective in bringing the disease under control, especially if treatment starts within three days of the onset of symptoms. And don't forget the shingles vaccination: the U.S. Center for Disease Control recommends it for anyone 60 or older regardless of a past history with chicken pox.
See your physician as soon as possible if you begin to notice symptoms. Don't let shingles interfere with your life — or your dental care.
Though some people choose dentures for missing teeth, they are only temporary and can be very uncomfortable to wear. With dental implants, you can have a full set of teeth again that will last and look beautiful for many years. Learn how you can go about restoring your smile with dental implants installed by Drs. Joseph and Nina Zeigler at their Saint Louis, MO dentist office.
Smile Restoration with Implants
If you’ve had to go any stretch of time with a missing tooth, you know how inconvenient it can be. Not only is it an embarrassing problem for aesthetic reasons (hiding your teeth when you smile for pictures) it also makes it hard to speak and eat normally. Dental implants are the smart alternative for patients who have healthy gums. They are small dental devices that are inserted into the bone tissue to form the basis of a new, permanently rooted tooth. Implant-supported dentures can be created for patients who have multiple missing teeth.
The Beauty of Dental Implants
One important benefit of a dental implant is that it is very nice and natural looking. After the actual titanium implant heals, it is topped with a porcelain crown that looks like a brand new, white tooth. Your Saint Louis dentist will color match the new crown to your smile so that it blends right in.
Taking Care of Your Implant and Your New Smile
Dental implants can stay rooted as long as the rest of your teeth. Here are a few simple tips that will help you keep your implant and your new and improved smile for as long as possible:
- Clean around and between each of your teeth with floss every day to remove food and liquid matter
- Stay vigilant about keeping plaque from hardening around your implanted tooth
- See your dentist at least twice a year for thorough tartar and plaque removal
Your Restored Smile Awaits...
Thanks to dental implants, countless patients are now able to enjoy their meals, smile and live comfortably, without worries or embarrassment. Call (314) 872-7590 today to see how your smile can be restored with implants by Drs. Joseph and Nina Zeigler at their Saint Louis, MO dentist office.
Have you started orthodontic treatment recently? Are you having a little trouble getting used to your braces? If so, you are not alone: Everybody goes through an adjustment period during which they momentarily wonder if they’ll really ever get used to this. Don’t worry — you will! And we’ve never heard anyone say, on the day their braces come off and their new smile is revealed, that they aren’t glad they went the distance. Just ask Houston Rockets all-star center Dwight Howard, who discussed his own orthodontic treatment in a recent interview.
“I’m sure I was no different than anyone else who has ever had braces,” he told Mediaplanet. “At first I hated them so much… That changed once I got used to them and I actually grew to love them.” What’s Howard’s advice? “Do exactly what your orthodontist says and know that the outcome is well worth it in the end.” We couldn’t agree more! Here are some tips for wearing braces comfortably:
- Hard & Chewy Foods: If you love fresh fruits and vegetables, that’s great; there’s no reason to give them up, just the really hard ones. You don’t want to bite into an apple or carrot or any other hard foods like bagels and pizza that have any “size” to them. Small pieces may be ok as long as they can’t bend your wires. Chewy, sticky candy should really be avoided completely. Same with soda, sports drinks and so-called energy drinks because they contain acids that promote tooth decay and can cause a lot of damage around the braces.
- Effective Oral Hygiene: Keeping your teeth clean is more important than ever, but also more challenging than ever. It’s easy for food to get stuck under wires and around brackets, but failing to remove it can cause tooth decay, gum irritation and soreness. Therefore, the cleaner your teeth and your braces are, the healthier you will be. Use interdental cleaning brushes and/or a floss-threader to get behind your wires. A mouthrinse can also help strengthen teeth and keep bacteria in check. If you have any questions about how to clean between your teeth, please ask for a demonstration at your next visit.
- Pain Relief: Some soreness at the beginning of orthodontic treatment is normal. To relieve it, you can use an over-the-counter pain reliever and/or a warm washcloth or heating pad placed on the outside of the jaw. If brackets or wires are rubbing against the inside of your cheeks or lips, try applying wax to these areas of your braces. If this does not offer enough relief, we may be able to trim the end of a poking wire. Call us if you need help with this.
Our goal is to make your orthodontic treatment as comfortable as possible on the way to achieving your all-star smile. If you have questions about adjusting to braces, contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can learn more by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Caring for Teeth During Orthodontic Treatment.”