The Gentle Dentist Discusses Emergency Dental Care

January 31, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Hi, this is Dr. Antolak from The Gentle Dentist in Shelby Township, Michigan. What I’d like to do is speak to you about emergency dental care. At our office, we try to make ourselves available to those people who are having dental emergencies. And normally, dental emergencies happen at the most inopportune time. So if you’re trying to reach us during off hours we’ll definitely get back with you as soon as we can.

Dental emergencies are basically two or three different types of emergencies. One is traumatic, and that is if you get into accidents of some sort where you can break off your tooth and then you see either have that repaired or if you have an emergency with tooth actually falls out. Rinse that out and place it right back into that socket that where it came from. That’s the best of taking care of your problem with that. The other type of dental emergencies that we do have are when someone has had a filling missing or a big hole in the mouth. And all of a sudden, the thing develops into a bad toothache. Well that toothache is from the bacteria that’s in the mouth getting to the nerve. And then it goes from the nerve into the bone. And as it gets into the bone, it creates an infection, and that infection creates pressure inside of the jawbone. And that’s a dental emergency that gets that taken care of.

And the third type’s is where you normally see is where somebody has gum disease and they have bone loss around their teeth. Well they might get some food caught in that area or even around wisdom teeth, where food gets caught in that area, and blows the wisdom teeth up. It hurts and then they have to have something to deal with the pain. There’s a few different ways of dealing with emergencies that do take place over the counter remedies are obviously pretty limited.  But the most important thing is to get the dentist as quickly as possible.

So, if you have an emergency and you can wait to go to the dentist. We’d love to see you. Give us a call at 586-247-3500. If it’s a true emergency, and needs immediate attention, you might want to get to your local hospital call them.

Thank you and have a blessed day.

Filed Under: Dental Emergencies, Dental Videos Tagged With: , ,

Why do you consider yourself The Gentle Dentist and what do you do for the dental phobic?

June 2, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

At www.TheGentleDentist.com we realize that many have had bad experiences in their past at the dental office.  Typically 5-10 years go by and the high fear patient finally gets to the point of where they can’t stand their oral pain any longer.  This is when they do research on the internet with a desire to find a dentist who specializes in treating the high fear patient who has not been into the dentist for  years.  With a search on Google for “dentists for chickens”, “dentist for the fearful patient” or “dentistry for the dental phobic” we usually come up high on the search engines especially when looking for the Shelby Twp., Macomb Township, Sterling Heights or Washington Township Michigan areas.  After reading through our web site they find it comfortable enough to get the will power to at least email us. 

After they talk to Jessica our scheduling coordinator and make their appointment they will receive electronic health history questionaires to fill our in the convenience of their own home.  The day before their appointment I will call them up to introduce myself.  Because dentistry requires a high level of trust I like to introduce myself to them and see if they have any questions or concerns.  Many times they will give me a history of their horrific experiences at the previous dentist.  These are usually experienced as a child so we try to work through the issues slowly to eventually proceed with the exam.  We will only proceed when they are willing to do so.   

The mouth is an extremely personal space.  Most people don’t want others (including the dentist) to see their embarassing smile because of darkened teeth, missing teeth, cavities or bad gums.  Up to this point it has been their little “secret” and to go beyond that “secret” it is very difficult.  Most often they will say “I’m so embarassed of my teeth” or “I should have been in here years ago”.  The good news is that there is only room for improvement and what has happened in the past has been in the past.  Our goal is to move them beyond the past and to look forward to their future healthy and good looking smile. 

Another issue that has kept them from regular dental check ups is that they fear that they will get scolded or lectured to.  I always reassure them that it is my responsibility to inform them of their situation and we will work together as a team to move.  Lecturing will never work and has never been something that I have done and will never do. 

These are some of the personal things we do at www.TheGentleDentist.com to make the visit for our high fear patient one that can be tolerated and even appreciated.  If you have questions please call our Shelby Township office at (586)247-3500.

Filed Under: Dental Emergencies, Dental fear, General Dentistry, How to choose a dentist, Mouth pain, Oral Conditions, Sedation Dentistry

Mouth Breathing and its effect on your body

January 18, 2011 by ·

Mouth breathing:

  1. Can increase asthma, high blood pressure, heart disease and other medical problems
  2. Reduces the levels of oxygen exchange in the blood/lung interface. The lungs extract oxygen from the air we breathe primarily on the exhale. Because the nostrils are smaller then the mouth, air exhaled through the nose creates back pressure when one exhales. It slows the air escape so the lungs have more time to extract oxygen from them.
  3. During sleep, it predisposes one to loud snoring and irregular breathing and can lead to a serious condition called Sleep Apnea and heart conditions.

Nose Breathing:

  1. Proper nose breathing reduces high blood pressure or hypertension and stress for most people. Kind of like a speed control (governor) on a car engine.
  2. The nostrils and sinuses filter and warm the air going into the lungs. The mouth breather bypasses this.
  3. Maintaining a keen sense of smell is very important for enjoying life and for safety and social acceptance.  There are receptors in the nose, known as olfactory bulbs, are direct extensions of a part of the brain known as  the hypothalamus. This extension regulates the heartbeat, blood pressure, thirst, appetite, and of course, the cycles of sleeping a waking. The hypothalamus is also responsible for generating chemicals that influence memory and emotion.
  4. Lessening of the common cold is another good reason for nose breathing. The mucous (white blood cells that kill germs) membrane lining the nose extends all the way from the inner linings of the nostrils down the trachea to the bronchi the directly enters the lungs. Germs get caught and die in the mucous.

Long term mouth breathers experience difficulty in swallowing pills, increased gagging response, increased mucous production and other difficulties.

Mouth breathers do not adjust the way they swallow as an infant.  Typically infants project their tongues out to swallow and transition at around 8 months old so that their tongue is positioned along the top of their palate when swallowing.  Pacifiers and thumb sucking also affects the tongue position during the developmental years. If they aren’t removed early enough the tongue continues to push out beyond the front teeth preventing normal jaw and teeth development.  The relationship of the upper and lower teeth is also affected since they have to accommodate the tongue.  I have seen in adult patients the affects of this and it is almost impossible to change the jaws without surgery.  They usually have an open bite on their front teeth so that when they bite together the front top teeth don’t overlap the lower front teeth.  This is not cosmetically appealing and it has negative effects on the health of the jaw joint.

Allergies also are responsible for the mouth breathing tendencies.  The pharynx (back of throat) swells blocking off the nasal passage preventing smooth airflow through the nose.  It is important to determine what children are allergic to as soon as possible so that the destructive forces of mouth breathing are minimized.

As an adult it is best to retrain yourself to nose breathe during the day.  There are devices you can put in your mouth at night to retrain your tongue and help with nose breathing.  In fact, I had a patient the other day who was having a very difficult time breathing.  His CPAP breathing machine wasn’t functioning properly and I had him a Breathe Rite Strip to enlarge his nasal passage.  He was shocked at the difference he felt and the ease in which he could breathe.

Our human bodies have been designed so intricately that the smallest change in our function can effect so many other facets of how we function and our overall health.  If you have any questions please call me at (586)247-3500 or email me at DrAntolak@TheGentleDentist.com

Dr. Antolak treats his dental patients in a relaxed, friendly atmosphere where you are treated like a guest in the home.  He specializes in cosmetic dentistry, implant dentistry and general dentistry using sedation dentistry if necessary for his high fear patients. He has been treating patients for the past 21 years.

As A reminder: The thermostats are being turned up and it is a good idea to have a humidifier in you room where  you sleep since this significantly helps with dry mouth, sore throats, and adds to the efficiency of heating your home.  I was reminded of this at a recent visit to a nursing home and recommended that a humidifier would help increase the comfort of sleeping for the patient.

Filed Under: Dental Emergencies, General Dentistry, Mouth pain, Nutrition, Oral Conditions Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
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