Intra-Oral Camera
A digital device that allows the dentist to photograph the teeth and display the images taken on a chairside monitor. It magnifies and illuminates the teeth with bright light. You will be seeing your teeth the way the dentist sees them when he is doing his examination. This is a valuable tool for patient education so you can see fine cracks in the teeth and fillings especially in those difficult to get to areas. This device is also great for getting insurance to cover treatments such as crowns and bridges by providing photographic evidence of disease and other defects.
Soft-tissue Diode Laser
All lasers work by delivering energy in the form of light. When used for surgical and dental procedures, the laser acts as a cutting instrument or vaporiser of tissue that it comes into contact with. Soft tissue lasers are very effective in dentistry because they absorb the wavelengths of pigments such as haemoglobin and melanin which are abundant in oral soft tissues. The major advantages of laser surgery are that minimal anaesthetic is required if at all, bleeding is minimal, the healing process is faster and no stitches are required afterwards.
Lasers are used to remove excessive gum tissue and to reshape gum tissue to make teeth look longer when we are doing aesthetic cases. Lasers can also be used to remove nerve tissue from teeth during root canal treatments as well as to reduce the incidence and intensity of oral apthous ulcers.
ZOOM! Advanced Power In-office Tooth Whitening System
A lot of our patients have seen this system advertised and have inquired about it. It is the same system used in the television show Extreme Makeover. Instead of using bleaching trays over a two to three week period, you can get dramatically whiter teeth in just under an hour with this in-office system. You can expect an improvement of up to 8 shades of colour. Almost everyone can benefit from this service. It is safe and causes no harmful effects to the teeth. The substance used is activated hydrogen peroxide which penetrates the tooth to dissolve away stains without altering the tooth structure. The most common causes of discolouration are ageing and substances like tea, coffee, colas, tobacco and red wine. Some people may experience sensitivity to cold during and for a day or so after treatment, but these symptoms disappear soon afterwards.
Lumineers Porcelain Veneer System
Allows a smile makeover with minimal removal of healthy tooth structure. This porcelain can be made as thin as a contact lens which allows the procedure to be done ultra conservatively. This is a patented ceramic available only from the USA. It is fairly new in Canada but has been available in the US for many years with good results. Conventional veneers usually require about 1mm of tooth structure to be removed from the front of a tooth. Lumineers can be done in two visits with no shots and virtually no drilling of healthy tooth structure. Only minor cosmetic contouring is sometimes required. One can correct a wide variety of dental distortions and conditions such as tooth discolouration, noticeable gaps, permanent stains and broken and misshaped teeth.
Velscope—Oral Cancer Screening Device
Allows the dentist or hygienist to look at the oral soft tissues like the cheeks, tongue, lips and floor of the mouth under a blue fluorescent light. This allows potentially cancerous cells to be detected before they appear to the naked eye on the surface. We recommend that smokers, people over 40 and those with a family history of malignancies to do this examination once every 12 months. Risk factors include age, tobacco use, excessive alcohol consumption, unprotected sun exposure and low intake of fruits and vegetables. Oral cancer is extremely aggressive once it has manifested but quite treatable if detected early in the pre-cancerous state and monitored. The Velscope examination is very quick, non-invasive, inexpensive and can be done during your routine dental hygiene visits. Just as we do annual screenings for cervical, skin, prostate and breast cancer, we encourage you to have oral cancer screenings with the aid of the Velscope annually.
Botox
Our latest proud addition to the aesthetic side of the practice. Botox will eliminate or significantly reduce all those unwanted facial creases like frown lines, horizontal lines on the forehead and crow’s feet around the eyes. It works by relaxing the muscles of facial expression to give one a relaxed, refreshed appearance. The effects last about 4 to 6 months on average but regular maintenance usually results in less Botox, less frequently over time.
The dental profession’s in depth knowledge of the facial nerves and muscles and the frequent application of injections, make dentists well suited to providing this service We also view this new service as a logical extension of framing a new smile makeover. A more youthful smile should be complemented by a more youthful skin. These procedures are proven and very safe. The procedure takes 15- 20 minutes, is virtually painless and benefits are noticeable within a few days.
Nitrous-oxide Sedation
A safe and effective sedative agent that is mixed with oxygen and inhaled through a small mask that fits over your nose. It helps anxious patients relax during dental procedures but remain conscious and aware of their surroundings. It was used as a party gas in the 1920’s and was know as “laughing gas”. It takes effect within a few deep breaths and once the procedure is over, one is able to drive home unassisted.
Invisalign
A revolutionary new system of straightening teeth without the need for wires or brackets. The doctor takes an impression of your upper and lower teeth after an examination and diagnosis. The movements of the teeth are then determined with the aid of a computer algorithm that will produce a set of almost invisible aligners that will fit over the teeth. These aligners will each produce small movements and new aligners will be required every one to two weeks until the ideal position of the teeth is reached. These aligners can be removed when eating and brushing one’s teeth. Treatment time and the number of aligners required depend on the complexity of the case. Your dentist will give you this information once the treatment plan has been customised for you.
Intra-Oral Scanner
This device is truly a marvel of modern computer technology. It is used to take a 3D picture of your teeth which you can see live on the computer monitor as it is happening. Instead of using messy impression materials to make moulds of your teeth in plaster, a digital scan is taken and sent to the lab electronically. It is quicker than a conventional impression, less messy, far more comfortable for patients with fewer delivery delays to the laboratory. This device can also be used to show you what a potential smile makeover will look like as well as show you what outcome to expect for your Invisalign orthodontic treatment within a few seconds. This is definitely the future direction of dentistry.
Extra-Oral Digital X-rays
This device all but replaces the film that has traditionally been placed in your mouth to take X-ray images of the teeth. Routine imaging can now be done outside the mouth. There is less need for film or chunky sensors that can make some patients gag and press tightly on the tissues in people with smaller mouths causing discomfort. There is a lot more information for far less radiation on these images.
