Oral appliance therapy - your dentist may save your life!!

What is oral appliance therapy and can my dentist really save my life?

Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleep related breathing disorder that involves a decrease or complete stop in airflow despite an ongoing effort to breath.  It occurs when the muscles relax during sleep, causing  soft tissues at the back of the throat to collapse and block the upper airway.

Well let's think about it, air flow stop, that sounds like suffocation.  For people with OSA this can happen a few times an hour to 40, 50, 60, or more times an hour while you sleep and it can be pretty serious.

If left untreated will have impact on your cardiovascular system, increase chance of motor vehicle accidents, psychiatric and behavioral issues, quality of life and productivity issues, endocrine and and neurocognitive issues.

A cpap (continuous positive airway pressure) machine can treat this but this machine is strapped onto you and the compliance is not great, perhaps around 50%.  If you can wear this machine then  your success is close to 100%.  If you can't get used to wearing this then you need to find another solution.

This brings us to the dentist, your dentist can fabricate an appliance (mandibular advancement device) for you that stops your tongue and jaw from falling backwards as you sleep and opens your airway to help you breath.  Many people can tolerate this much better and it again lets you breath while you sleep and perhaps saves your life.

Any questions you have don't hesitate to leave a reply on the blog.

Regards and all the best

Dr. Ron Barzilay

Hamilton Ontario Canada

www.rondentist.com

Should I go to the Dentist if I am Pregnant and what can I have done?

Should I go to the dentist if I am pregnant and what can I have done?

This question comes up often.  Unfortunately it mostly comes up when the pregnant patient is in pain.
In this situation the answer is quite simple,  of course you can go to the dentist.  There is no question here.  If you broke your arm while pregnant would you not go to the hospital?  Of course you would and you know that they would take the xrays needed and give you medication as required.
If you had a tooth ache, we would take xrays as required and do treatment as required.  We would also give you any medication required.  Having said this, a shield always covers the fetal area when giving you x-rays (dental xrays are minimal amounts to begin with).  Also most professionals will do their best to give medications which have the least affect on the fetus.
If you are planning on getting pregnant, it is a good idea to have your teeth checked first and to make sure that you do not have dental problems that could lead to pain or infection during pregnancy.  If you have fillings to do we generally try to do them in the second trimester.  Small fillings can wait but anything that is quite large can become painful and infected if not treated early.  If that happens then that can involve a lot more things for the unborn child than the filling would have.
Also we do recommend extra cleanings during pregnancy as the hormonal change in a women's body during pregnancy causes a more exagerated response of the gums to the bacteria in the mouth resulting in a greater amount of inflammation of the gums.  This inflammation can manifest as swollen and bleeding gums which may be uncomfortable.
The short is you can and should go to your dentist during pregnancy and don't hesistate to ask your dentist regarding any concerns which you may have.
All the best
Dr. Ron Barzilay
Having fun in Hamilton Ontario.
www.rondentist.com

Do Root Canals harm your health? NO!!!

This past summer a young man came into my practice after hitting his front teeth in a car accident.  Two of the front teeth would require root canals as a result of the blows to them.  The third tooth had part of the crown fractured diagonally but at present did not require root canal treatment.  It would require a crown.
I referred this young man to an Endodontist (specialist in root canals) for this treatment.  Two weeks later this young man came into my office asking to speak to me.  He informed me that he had cancelled his appointment with the Endodontist and was inquiring about having his front teeth replaced with implants.
I asked him why he was considering this course of action?  He responded by telling me that he had read on the internet that root canals would harm his health.
Great, another internet Myth!
I told this young man that he had NOTHING to worry about when it comes to root canals.  That the treatment was safe and validated by years of real scientific study.   He was a little reluctant to tell me about what he had read.  On the other hand, he was not sure if he totally believed what he had read so he came to discuss what he should do regarding his teeth.
I again advised him that root canal treatment would be the best course of treatment in his mouth.  That I had a front tooth with a root canal in it since I was 9 years old.  That is 44 years since I had it done and no I don't suffer from arthritis, Lou Gehrig's disease or a host of other diseases that root canals are supposed to cause.  But of course this is just my own personal observation and not science.  The science, done by Doctors and Dentists and other researchers,  corroborate the safety of this procedure.  I further asked him why would he want to take out his natural teeth and replace them with implants.  Some of these articles say a root canal tooth is a dead tooth and therefore should come out.  Great, you are going to replace one dead part with another dead part - the implant.  In most of the articles you are told that root canal treatment is one of the most expensive treatments in dentistry and you know those greedy dentist are not telling you the truth because they just want to make more money.  Well, the truth is, to extract this fellows  teeth and replace them with implant supported crowns would end up costing him 4-5 times as much money.  Another myth busted, I guess we dentists actually do care more about our patients than the money!!
There is so much more that I could elaborate on what these people are saying but I am busy actually treating and caring for my patients.
Suffice to say that this young man did have the root canals done and he is fine.
To anyone reading this out there, please be careful of all the people out there on the internet who truly would put your health at risk through dissemination of lies and half truths in support of their own personal agendas.  Your Doctors and Dentists are professional who have truly dedicated their lives to improve the lives of others.  They are not the ones you should be afraid of.

Having fun doing dentistry in Hamilton Ontario.

All the best
Dr.Ron Barzilay
www.rondentist.com

How to make your Dentist HAPPY!

Dentists are just ordinary people and like ordinary people something's make them sad and something's make them happy.  Something's make them angry and something's make them smile.
Why is it important to make your dentist happy?  Well I guess I could tell you that he is the guy holding the needle so it is not a bad idea to make him happy (just kidding) but that is not true.  Your dentist is a professional and even if he is angry he will never hurt you and he will always act for you benefit.  Then why even worry about whether you dentist is happy or not.  I guess it is the same reason we try to make anyone happy.  Because it is the right thing to do!!  But here is a little secret that many people don't know.  If you treat people well then they will treat you well.  If you are nice to your dentist he will be nice to you.  If you don't miss appointments or cancel at the last second he will be more inclined to stay late for your emergency.  If you are just plain nice then the whole office will always bend over backwards for you in just about everything.  No this is not a secret but for some reason (and it is so simple) most people don't know this. 

So what makes a dentist happy you may ask?  Well here are a few things:

Remember your appointments especially if you just booked it yesterday.  Don't be a habitual appointment no show.
Remember to shut off your cellphone when going into treatment.  Nothing worse than the cell phone buzzing throughout treatment.
Brush your teeth!  Next time your dentist asks you why you are not brushing don't say "It's a time thing!"  We know that anyone can find two minutes in the morning and two minutes in the evening, which is much less time than you spend watching TV or checking your Facebook everyday.
Remember to do the treatment that has to get done.  Nothing worse than you showing up a year later with a toothache and now we have to extract the tooth which we told you then was just a small filling.
Nothing is worse than this happening to your child because you didn't book the appointment, better it should happen to you.
Remind your children we have coloring books for coloring and the reception carpet is not part of the coloring book.  Yes we do love children and see so many of them but we just ask them and you to respect our home as you would respect your own.
Oh yes, remember to pay your bill. 

There are more things but I think you get the general idea.
"Remember to treat your dentist, or anyone, as you would like to be treated yourself."

Having fun doing Dentistry in Hamilton Ontario
All the best to everyone.
Dr. Ron Barzilay
www.rondentist.com

If you have a comment let me know and you are more than welcome to follow this blog.

Sometime a Single Tooth Goes Dark

Here is an exchange regarding a single tooth going dark.  I hope it is useful to anyone out there with a similar question.

Dear Dr Barzilay, I live in PA, so I am not inquiring to be a new patient. I have been searching the internet looking for treatments for teeth whitening options, specifically one tooth. One of my front teeth seems to be getting darker than all the rest. I have not had any damage to the tooth or root, no root canal, just darker than the rest. I have never had white teeth, so I am not looking for magic, just suggestions. I am 56 years old and in good health. If you can give me any kind of suggestions or if you have anything in Canada that we do not have in the US, I would greatly appreciate if you can tell me. Thank you very much. Sincerely, C

HI C,

Whitening of the one tooth really depends on the reason it has darkened and how dark is it?  There is always a reason it has darkened relative to the other teeth.

Sometimes you will have received a blow to the tooth and you will not even remember it.  The nerve has been damaged and the nerve as a defense mechanism lays down more internal tooth structure which makes the tooth appear yellower than the other teeth.   In some cases as a result of a blow the nerve dies and the tooth darkens and a root canal treatment is required before any whitening.  You really need to see a dentist to tell you why the tooth has darkened.  That will dictate the treatment.  Sometimes we can bleach the individual tooth from the outside.  Sometimes if there has been a root canal (which you may or may not need) we can bleach it from the inside.  Sometimes you need a veneer or a crown on the tooth.  It really depends on the reason the tooth has darkened so my main suggestion is to see your dentist and find out why the tooth has darkened and he/she will tell you what can be done.

 

All the best

Dr. Ron Barzilay

 

 

Dr.Barzilay,

I had my teeth professionally whitened a few years back, but to tell you the truth I don't think it made much of a difference. I have not had a root canal on the tooth in question.  It just seems a bit darker.  My dentist says it is just age.

Thanks again for your help!
C

 

 

Hi C,

On a single tooth that has darkened I have done bleaching on just that tooth.  Bleaching trays but you only place a drop of material on the tooth that has darkened.  I have had good results.  If you use trays and place material in the whole tray then all the teeth will whiten and the tooth that was dark will whiten but will always look darker than the others since they have also whitened.  Try placing a single drop of whitener on that specific tooth in the tray. (otherwise it is a veneer or crown which if it is a front tooth then they are always hard to match and then you are most likely going to be doing a  good number of  teeth to insure color match).

All the best

Dr. Ron Barzilay

www.rondentist.com

Thank you! I am going to try bleaching just the one tooth rather than all of them. I will keep you updated!

C

 

I AM TOO SCARED TO GO TO THE DENTIST

I am too scared to visit the dentist!!

How many times have I heard this? 

Too many times to remember.
Well of course the patient is now sitting in my chair and telling me this.  I guess something overcame the fear.  That something was the PAIN!
I always get a little chuckle out of this momemt because it is inevitable and it just repeats itself over and over again.  I always tell these patients that it had to happen.  They may not like to come to the dentist but one way or another they are coming.  The difference being that either they will be walking through the door or they will be crawling through the door.  BUT THEY ARE COMING!

Unfortunately now, there is a lot of damage that needs fixing and they will be coming for many more sessions than if they had come earlier.

We as dentists are experts at pain and anxiety control.  We really can give freezing almost completely pain free.  If regardless of the freezing the patient is still nervous, we have many methods to alleviate that anxiety.  From laughing gas to oral sedation, to IV sedation, to general anesthetic, we do have solutions.
Please let your dentist try to help you when the work is miniscule as opposed to your mouth falling apart.
Remember, one way or another you are going to visit your dentist.

All the best

Dr. Ron Barzilay

Having fun in Hamilton, Ontario