Dental Care Archives - Page 6 of 8 - Darlene Sand Wall DMD

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Dental Care

Dental Phobia Affects Children, Says Erlanger Dentist

If you suffer from a fear of going to the dentist, you’re not alone. Almost 30-40 million American adults fear or feel anxious about a dental appointment. A recent study indicates that a fear of visiting the dentist can start in childhood and that parents can influence kids’ impressions of oral care. Avoiding regular dental appointments puts you at a heightened risk for oral and general health issues. In this article, Erlanger cosmetic dentist Dr. Darlene Henry explores the effects of fearing dental appointments.

Parental Fear of Dentists

Research indicates that when only one family member feels anxiety or fear toward visiting a dentist office, the entire family also feels some degree of apprehension. Typically, fathers transmit dental fear to children, either directly or via mothers. Even when mothers lower anxiety, fathers influence a mother’s actions through their actions at a dentist office. A palpable dental fear displayed by parents spreads to children, who carry a fear of going to the dentist with them through their lives. Fearing the dentist leads to infrequent dental checkups, which can cause oral problems to go unnoticed.

Effects of Dental Phobia

By not visiting your dentist regularly, you invite a host of dental problems, such as tooth decay and gum disease. In as little as 26 hours, food particles and plaque that stick between teeth harden into tartar, or dental calculus. Brushing and flossing cannot remove tartar, so seeing your dentist for a six-month checkup serves a necessary purpose. Plaque and tartar host acid-producing bacteria that de-mineralize tooth enamel, causing cavities. These same bacteria infect gums and can reach tooth roots, destroying
the connective tissue that holds your teeth in place. In advanced stages of gum disease, tartar forms beneath the gum line, where bacteria breed and cause gums to swell, bleed, and lose grip on teeth.

Schedule an Appointment with Your Erlanger Dentist

Visit Dr. Henry and show your kids they have nothing to fear at our 41018 dentist office. Simple keeping up with six-month checkups can keep teeth free of tartar and harmful bacteria. Call (859) 344-8500 to schedule an appointment. We serve patients from Erlanger, Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Fort Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, and Taylor Mill.

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Dental Care

Renew Your Confidence with Your Erlanger Dentist

How often do you smile? Studies show that smiling, even insincerely, boosts a person’s mood.Crooked teeth or tooth stains may keep you from showing off your smile. Stifling a smile can send the wrong message, and people may interpret a straight face to represent sadness or aggression. Don’t let dissatisfaction with your smile keep you from properly expressing yourself when cosmetic dentistry can improve the appearance of teeth and boost your confidence. In this article, Erlanger cosmetic dentist Dr. Darlene Henry explains the benefits of cosmetic dentistry.

How to Restore Your Smile

Dr. Henry can offer various treatment plans to correct crooked, stained, or chipped teeth.

Porcelain veneers will make your teeth appear straighter, while simultaneously whitening your smile. Dr. Henry places thin shells of handcrafted porcelain over surfaces of front teeth.
Veneers can withstand the pressures of biting and chewing, and resist stains.
Tooth contouring can reshape teeth to smooth rough or sharp edges for a a softer-looking smile.
We also offer take-home, professional teeth whitening trays to brighten your smile.
Color-matched bonding material can fill cracks or chips, close gaps, or be applied as a veneer to brighten permanently stained teeth.

Health Benefits of Cosmetic Dentistry

You may want to show off your straighter, whiter teeth, but cosmetic dentistry offers more reasons to smile. Cosmetic dentistry not only improves the look of your mouth, but can also restore the way it functions. Restoring damaged teeth and replacing one or more missing teeth also lowers your risk of gum disease, which research links to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and Alzheimer’s disease. Furthermore, if you suffer with TMD-induced headaches, realigning your bite may also relieve your pain.

Schedule an Appointment with Your Erlanger Dentist

Talk with Dr. Henry to explore options for your cosmetic dentistry procedure. We offer a variety of teeth whitening treatments and porcelain veneers to straighten front teeth and make you smile more. Call our 41018 dentist office at (859) 344-8500 to make an appointment. We serve patients from Erlanger, Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Fort Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, and Taylor Mill.

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Dental Care

Erlanger Dentist Explains Cold and Canker Sores

Maintaining good oral health requires that we pay attention to our entire mouth. Unsightly and sometimes painful cold and canker sores may not directly affect our teeth, but they could pose problems to our health. Do you know the difference between a cold sore and a canker sore? Understanding these lesions can help you refine treatment when either appears. In this article, Erlanger dentist Dr. Darlene Henry explains the differences between cold sores and canker sores.

Cold Sores

The herpes simplex 1 virus, which most cold sore sufferers contract as children, causes eruptions outside of the mouth around the lips. Nerve ganglions serve as the home for the virus. Nerves irritate the virus when illness or stress occurs, but the virus does not damage nerves. Trauma to the nerve area also encourages the virus to deliver its signature red eruptions around lips. You may recognize cold sores as small, fluid-containing lesions. A long-lasting cold sore eventually cracks and leaks fluid that hardens. Since doctors have yet to find a cure for the cold sore virus, the best treatment options are preventive. To avoid cold sore development, begin treating areas that itch, burn, or feel numb before a cold sore appears. Talk to Dr. Henry about drugs that help suppress herpes simplex 1 to minimize appearances of cold sores.

Canker Sores

Unlike cold sores, canker sores appear inside of the mouth on the tongue, the inner lips, inside of cheeks, or on the mouth floor. Although doctors know that infections do not lead to canker sores, the exact cause of canker sores remains unknown. However, canker sores can lead to infection. Sometimes, larger, ulcerous sores do not heal, inviting more bacteria. Treatment for canker sores, like gels and nascent oxygen, only reduce pain, since most sores heal naturally. Meet with Dr. Henry when canker sores are persistent or ulcerous. Mouth ulcers may signal health problems like Crohn’s disease or oral cancer.

Schedule an Appointment with Your Erlanger Dentist

See Dr. Henry at our 41018 dentist office to discuss treatment options for your cold or canker sores. Dr. Henry may provide a referral for an oral pathologist to assist in maintaining good oral health. Call (859) 344-8500 to schedule an appointment. We welcome patients from Erlanger, Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Fort Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, and Taylor Mill.

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Dental Care

Put Down the Candy Cane and Step Away from the Cheese Tray!

Many of us celebrate the holiday season by attending parties and celebrations at the office, with friends, and in our homes with family. One of the most essential parts of these wintertime celebrations includes the many wonderful holiday treats that we only seem to eat during this time of year. Unfortunately, most of these holiday goodies can give us bad breath. Anyone hoping to get a kiss under the mistletoe this year had better follow the advice of their Erlanger family dentist for avoiding these commonplace bad breath culprits.

Candy is Dandy for Causing Bad Breath

From candy canes to hot cocoa swimming with marshmallows to Grandma’s famous Christmas fudge, sugary goodies pervade the snack table at nearly every holiday gathering. Unfortunately, those sweet treats don’t just widen your waistband. They also ruin your breath. Particles of sugar left in your mouth become food for bacteria. These bacteria digest the sugar and produce a foul-smelling, acidic by-product that eats away at your tooth enamel and gives you dragon breath.

Our Advice: Indulge in a single serving of your favorite holiday goodie and be sure to either brush your teeth or chew a piece of sugarless gum afterward.

Liquor is Quicker for Developing Halitosis

A glass of wine with dinner, a glass of champagne with dessert, and a few cocktails or beers while socializing. All that alcohol can add up to a wild night and mouthful of stink. Not only do most alcoholic drinks contain sugar that feed oral bacteria, but alcohol also causes dry mouth, a condition characterized by reduced saliva production. Without normal levels of saliva washing away bacteria and dead cells, you experience a buildup of these odor-causing elements.

Our Advice: If you choose to drink at a celebration, enjoy at least one glass of water after every alcoholic beverage. It will help stave off dry mouth and bad breath and can reduce the severity of a hangover.

Bad Breath: There’s an App(etizer) for That

Party appetizers are the perfect storm of bad breath-causing ingredients. Nearly all of them contain some combination of cheese or other dairy, salt, garlic, onion, or meat and while they may taste glorious, they’ll leave your breath smelling foul. Some foods, like garlic and onions, contain volatile sulfur compounds that cause bad odors to linger in the mouth. High protein foods such as dairy and meat attract bacteria that produce nasty-smelling by-products.

Our Advice: Enjoy a bit of that gourmet cheese ball or hot crab dip, but follow up your noshing with a few carrot and celery sticks from the veggie tray. Munching on raw vegetables has an abrasive effect that cleans the teeth, plus it encourages salivation which cleans the mouth naturally.

Schedule an Appointment for Fresh Holiday Breath

To schedule an appointment with Dr. Darlene Henry, call our Erlanger dental office at (859) 344 – 8500. We gladly serve patients from Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Fort Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, Taylor Mill, the 41018 zip code, and surrounding communities.

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Dental Care

Side Effects from Bisphosphonate Drugs Discussed by Kentucky Dentist

Many people, especially women, are concerned with bone loss as they age. Over the years, general physicians have often prescribed a certain class of drugs called bisphosphonates to combat bone density conditions like osteoporosis. Intravenous bisphosphonates are sometimes used with certain types of cancer. In high potency forms, bisphosphonates have stopped cancer cells from growing in some patients. Unfortunately, powerful and affective drugs often come with side effects. Dr. Darlene Henry, your Kentucky dentist, will talk about a condition that can defeats the very purpose of bone building medications called Bisphosphonate Related Osteonecrosis of the Jaw (BRONJ).

Bisphosphonate Drugs Explained

Bisphosphonate drugs adhere to the surfaces of bones directly beneath the osteoclasts (bone cells). These drugs bind with the osteoclasts and halt the process of bone degeneration. Bone density is then markedly improved, which eliminates the high risk for bone fractures that are often a concern as we age. The benefits seen from bisphosphonates have been seen for several years after the drug has last been taken. Cancer patients or women with osteoporosis can have weakened bones and diminished bone density. Bisphosphonate treatments allow people to go about life without worrying about easily fractured bones.

BRONJ Explained

Bisphosphonate Related Osteonecrosis of the Jaw (BRONJ) is basically the death of a portion of someone’s jawbone. Symptoms such as localized pain, swelling of gum tissue, loose teeth, and the most obvious – exposed bone – are signs that you should get to the dentist immediately, especially if you have been administered bisphosphonate drugs. BRONJ isn’t a common occurrence, but it does happen. Medical intervention is imperative when signs are seen.

As with everything related to your dental health, prevention is ideal. If you are beginning bisphosphonate therapy, visit your dentist for a thorough checkup before you start using the drugs. Discuss your treatment plan with your dentist. You will need to provide the dosage information you’re your dentist may be curious to hear more about your reasons for taking the drugs. A likely recommendation from your dental team will be extra diligent oral hygiene and more frequent visits to the dentist to check in. Communication with your dentist might possibly allow you to enjoy the benefits of bisphosphonate drugs while saving yourself from having to deal with BRONJ.

Feel free to call our Kentucky dental office at (859) 344 – 8500 if you have questions about how any medications might be affecting your oral health. We gladly serve patients from Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Fort Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, Taylor Mill, and surrounding communities.

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Dental Care

Kentucky Dentist Discusses Fall Spices for Better Health

The end of the year provides a time for people to experiment with some of their favorite fall foods and spices. Delicious pumpkin and squash dishes often find their way into the rotation during the colder months of the year. Not only can fall foods and spices play on your nostalgia and tug at your seasonal heart strings, but certain fall foods and spices could actually benefit your oral health and overall health. Around the holidays, many people travel far and wide to meet with family and friends for a bountiful feast. Your Kentucky dentist, Dr. Darlene Henry, discusses fall spices for better health.

Challenging Cinnamon and Other Spices

Many people might know about the cinnamon challenge: this is not that. Do not attempt to the ever-popular cinnamon challenge. However, incorporating cinnamon into your diet this fall could reduce inflammation in your mouth and throughout your body due to high levels of antioxidants. Studies indicate that consuming cinnamon could reduce blood sugar levels for patients with diabetes. Additionally, cinnamon can also lead to lower cholesterol in some patients.

No turmeric challenge reached immense popularity yet, so no confusion here. Most people know turmeric as the yellow spice associated with curry powder. Like cinnamon, turmeric contains loads of antioxidants capable of promoting better overall health. Some studies indicate that turmeric consumption can reduce your risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Patients with Alzheimer’s often suffer from reduced chewing ability and a loss of mental function. A yellow curry could keep you sharp for years to come.

Ginger: not just a character from Gilligan’s Island. The health benefits of ginger include nausea reduction and pain reduction. Ginger acts like aspirin, thinning blood and reducing pain. Additionally, eating ginger presents a wealth of benefits. The amount of antioxidants in a teaspoon equals the antioxidant levels in a cup of spinach.

Schedule Your Kentucky Dental Visit

Interested in learning about the health benefits of fall spices? Due for a checkup? You can reach our Kentucky dental office at (859) 344 – 8500. We gladly serve patients from Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Fort Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, Taylor Mill, and surrounding communities.

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Dental Care

Kentucky Dentist Celebrates Alzheimer’s Awareness Month

Your Kentucky dentist would like to acknowledge Alzheimer’s awareness month by describing the connection between gum disease and brain health. Anyone with poor oral health habits can develop gum disease, but when these habits have such serious repercussion, why engage in them?

What is Gum Disease

Gum disease is an infection of any of the periodontal tissues, including gums, the jawbone, and the tissues that connect them. Periodontal disease, or gum disease can cause serious harm not only to your gums and bones, but to other parts of your body as well, including your heart and brain. The first stage of gum disease is known as gingivitis. If your gums are red and swollen you may have gingivitis, but with careful attention to your daily oral health regimen and consultation with your Erlanger dentist, you can work to rid yourself of infection without suffering any long-term repercussions. If, however, you do not treat gingivitis promptly, it can progress to the much more serious periodontitis. In this stage of gum disease gums become severely compromised. They will be very swollen, and bleed easily. Advanced stages of gum disease cause gums and the alveolar bone to become so infected that they can no longer properly carry out their function of support tooth roots. Most cases of tooth loss are a direct result of gum disease that has gone untreated.

Gum Disease and Brain Health

As the body utilizes all its immune functions to fight off gum disease, it can flood the body with particles that cause inflammation not only in the gums, but in other areas as well. Of particular interest to your Kentucky dentist is the inflammation of the brain caused by gum disease. Multiple studies have been conducted showing that the body’s immune response to gum disease has direct effects on brain health and cognitive ability. Those who have suffered or do suffer from periodontal disease are more likely to score lower on tests of cognitive ability. Similarly there is a direct correlation between incidences of gum disease and the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

Meet With Dr. Henry Today

If caught early, gum disease is curable, so schedule an appointment today. You can reach our Kentucky dental office at (859) 344 – 8500. We gladly serve patients from Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Fort Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, Taylor Mill, and surrounding communities.

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Dental Care

Recommendations from Kentucky Dentist on Halting Gum Recession

Receding gums can be an irritating and unpleasant condition. Your gums have the job of sealing the inner workings of your teeth and roots. When that seal shrinks away, your roots can be exposed, bacteria and food can get caught in the spaces, and all of this opens you up to further infection. Appearance-wise, your teeth will start to look longer as your gums recede. Your Kentucky dentist, Dr. Darlene Henry, offers advice on how to stop the progression of gum disease.

A Brief Overview of Gum Disease

Gingival tissue (gums) prevents food from settling in the darkest recesses of your teeth. When we don’t take care of our teeth and gums, they are both at risk for infection. Different types of bacteria create gum disease and tooth decay, but tartar (calcified plaque) exacerbates both issues. Keeping your teeth free of plaque and tartar will help keep your gums healthy, so they’re not susceptible to deeper infection. Gingivitis is the first stage of gum disease, wherein gums become puffy and bleed easily. If not tended to, this can segue into periodontitis (severe gum disease) which includes periodontal pockets and gum recession.

Avoiding Gum Recession

There is a certain degree of gum recession that can happen with age, even when gum disease is not present. However, the expedient recession occurs with gum disease, teeth grinding, poorly done dental work, and over-crowded teeth that are difficult to clean properly. To do your best to avoid gum recession, invest in a high quality toothbrush. Replace manual toothbrushes every 4 weeks. An electric toothbrush should be given a new head replacement every 3 months. If you are a teeth grinder, get fitted by your dentist with a mouthguard to be worn at night. In general, visit the dentist every 6 months, without fail, and brush twice a day and floss at least once a day. Your gums will likely thank you by sticking around a lot longer.

Visit your Kentucky Area Family Dentist

If you are in need of a dental checkup, call your family dentist, Dr. Henry. You can reach our 41018 dentist office at 859-344-8500. We are happy to provide comprehensive dentistry serve families from Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Ft. Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, Taylor Mill, and other Kentucky neighborhoods.

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Dental Care

Happy Halloween from Your Kentucky Dentist

This is an exciting time of year for candy lovers. Americans purchase an estimated 600 million pounds of candy for Halloween every year. For perspective, imagine 16 billion fun sized candy bars. If that doesn’t inspire you to make an appointment for a checkup with your dentist, we’re not sure what will. However, moderate candy consumption is not an issue if you keep up with your oral hygiene and regular dental exams. As the holiday season ramps up with Halloween coming in less than a week, your Kentucky dentist, Dr. Henry, has a fun quiz on some candy facts.

Questions

Q1. How many pounds of chocolate will be sold during Halloween week?

A. 90,000
B. 90 million
C. 90 billion
D. 90 trillion

Q2. True or false – The top selling candy at Halloween is candy corn.

Q3. True or false – Sugar causes cavities.

Answers

A1. Approximately ninety million pounds of chocolate candy will be sold during Halloween week. Halloween leads other holidays in chocolate consumption. Roughly 65 million pounds are sold during the week leading up to Easter, and 48 million pounds are purchased during Valentine’s week.

A2. TRUE – Candy Corn is the top selling candy, at 20 million pounds purchased every year. Candy Corn is also the most searched-for candy related term on Google.

A3. FALSE – This is a bit of a trick question, but technically, sugar itself does not cause cavities. Sugar is a great contributor to cavities, however. Streptococcus mutans, the bacteria that cause cavities, feed on sugar. They metabolize sucrose into lactic acid, which softens tooth enamel and makes decay possible. So, rubbing sugar directly onto your teeth won’t technically give you a cavity, but it will be a part of the tooth decay process.

Kentucky Dentist Offers Dental Checkups

If you are due for a dental checkup, or have any dental concerns, Dr. Henry would love to see you. To schedule your appointment contact our Erlanger, KY dentist office at 859-344-8500. We are happy to serve families from Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Ft. Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, Taylor Mill, and other Kentucky communities around the 41018 zip code.

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Dental Care

Arthritis and Gum Disease Examined by Your Kentucky Dentist

We are in the middle of National Bone and Joint Awareness Week. You may not realize the different ways that your bone and joint health relate to your oral health. Consider your jawbone, for starters. Without proper function, and regular mineralization, you could have TMD (tempormandibular joint disorder) or facial collapse from lack of bone density. Arthritis is a painful condition that affects your joints though inflammation of tissues. Your Kentucky dentist, Dr. Darlene Henry, explains the connection between healthy teeth and arthritis in the knees.

Research Study Links Gum Disease Bacteria to Arthritis

Researchers from Case Western Reserve University, in Cleveland, OH, analyzed DNA information to determine that the bacteria that cause gum disease can travel all the way from the mouth to the knees. Synovial fluid surrounds the knee caps. This protective liquid is sterile in people with good health. However, when someone already has arthritis, the bacteria are able to take advantage of an already unhealthy situation, and settle in the knee joints. These findings are certainly compelling in terms of oral-systemic health (a connection between your mouth and body).

Can Bacteria from Gum Disease Infiltrate Other Parts of the Body?

While the Case Western Reserve research didn’t examine patients with advanced periodontal disease (gum disease) some of the patients examined presented with identical bacteria in their mouths and knee joints. The body offers a lot of potential channels for various strains of bacteria to travel through. This new evidence of the connection between gum disease and knee joint health warrants further research to uncover which other parts of the body could be affected by gum disease.

Schedule an Appointment with Your Kentucky Dentist

Taking care of your joints, and your teeth, are great ways to continue a wonderful quality of life as the years march on. If you are due for a dental checkup, or have any dental concerns, Dr. Henry would love to see you. To schedule your appointment contact our Erlanger, KY dentist office at 859-344-8500. We are happy to serve families from Cincinnati, Crestview Hills, Ft. Mitchell, Florence, Union, Independence, Taylor Mill, and other Kentucky communities around the 41018 zip code.

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