Author: Jennifer Wells

Dental visits can be a scary experience for some. We are always here to help, but it takes two to tango! We are so proud of everyone who schedules an appointment, makes it to the office, and completes the x-rays and exam.  This is often the point where patients say, “I just want my teeth cleaned and I will wait on any treatment. I am not hurting and really don’t want to spend the money.”  Most people do not understand the consequences of delaying dental treatment.

Our goal is to diagnose decay (cavities) and treat early. This will prevent pain, infection, and expensive treatment in the future.

Almost all consequences of delaying dental treatment can be attributed to dental decay growth.  Once a tooth has a cavity it will not “go away” on its own.  It will continue to grow!  No dentist can predict how quickly decay will spread.

1. Fillings can be bigger and more expensive. Fillings are categorized by how many surfaces of the tooth the filling will cover.  The more surfaces, the more expensive the filling is.  As decay grows to more surfaces of the tooth, the cost of the filling will be more.
2. A filling can no longer fix the tooth. If a cavity spreads to the cusps (pointy parts of the tooth), a crown (or cap) may be necessary to repair the tooth.  Crowns are significantly more expensive than fillings.
3. The nerve may become involved requiring a root canal. As decay grows into the tooth, if it reaches the nerve space, you may experience pain and swelling.  Once a cavity reaches the nerve the only way to save the tooth is with a root canal.
4. The decay can grow to the point the tooth isn’t repairable and must be extracted. As decay grows down the tooth, there are points in which the tooth can not be repaired due to the anatomy of the tooth.  Once it reaches these areas, the only option is to remove the tooth.  Keep in mind, repairing a tooth is almost always cheaper than replacing a tooth!

Dr. Wells recommends routine dental care with x-rays, exams, and cleanings. If treatment is recommended, have it completed as soon as possible in order to limit the growth of the decay and the consequences involved!

Call to schedule your visit with Dr. Wells today!

Do you ever find yourself gnawing at your nails? Nail-biting is a very common and difficult to break habit which usually has its beginnings in childhood. It can leave your fingers and nail beds red and swollen. But if you think that your nails are the only ones getting roughed up by nail-biting you’d be mistaken – so are your teeth!

According to a study by the Academy of General Dentistry, those who bite their nails, clench their teeth, or chew on pencils are at much higher risk to develop bruxism (unintentional grinding of the teeth). Bruxism can lead to tooth sensitivity, tooth loss, receding gums, headaches, and general facial pain.

Those are some nasty sounding side effects from chewing on your nails. Most nail-biting is a sign of stress or anxiety and its something you should deal with.

So what steps can you take if you have a nail-biting habit?

There are several things you can do to ease up on nail-biting:

• Trim your nails shorter and/or get regular manicures – Trimming your nails shorter is an effective remedy. In so doing, they’ll be less tempting and more difficult to bite on. If you also get regular manicures, you’ll be less likely to ruin the investment you’ve made in your hands and fingernails!
• Find a different kind of stress reduction – Try meditation, deep breathing, practicing yoga, or doing something that will keep your hands occupied like squeezing a stress ball.
• Wear a bitter-tasting nail polish – When your nails taste awful, you won’t bite them! Clear or colored, it doesn’t matter. This is also a helpful technique for helping children get over the habit.
• Figure out what triggers your nail-biting – Sometimes it’s triggered by stress or anxiety and other times it can be a physical stressor, like having hang nails. Knowing what situations cause you to bit your nails will help you to avoid them and break the habit.
• Wear gloves or bandages on your fingers – If you’ve tried the steps above and they aren’t working, this technique can prove effective since your fingernails won’t be accessible to bit.

If you’re still having trouble with nail-biting after trying these self-helps steps, it’s best to consult your doctor, dermatologist, or Dr. Jennifer Wells. For some, it may also be a sign of a deeper psychological or emotional problem.

Whatever the cause, nail-biting is a habit you need to break for your physical and emotional well-being. If you have any questions about the effects it can have on your oral health, please don’t hesitate to ask Dr. Jennifer Wells during your next visit at First Impressions Family Dentistry.

Cigarette smoke contains more than 6,000 chemicals. At least 200 of those chemicals are known to be harmful to your health. When smoke is inhaled, moist oral tissues are saturated with excessive amounts of carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, and host of other known carcinogens. Most oral cancers originate in abnormal squamous cell activity, which are cells found on the lips, inside the mouth, and in the throat.

How Oral Cancer Begins

Cells exposed to consistently high levels of cigarette smoke may eventually suffer abnormal mutations within their DNA. Since dexoyribonucleic acid (DNA) is responsible for providing cells with instructions about growth, reproduction, and death, these instructions become distorted, which causes the cells to reproduce uncontrollably.

Essentially, that is what cancer is: rapid, unchecked growth of genetically mutated cells that encourages the development of malignant tumors. Unfortunately, the chemicals in cigarette smoke are strongly associated with oral cancer.

Signs of Oral Cancer

Early-stage oral cancer is often asymptomatic, which means symptoms appear only after the cancer intensifies and spreads. Possible signs of oral cancer include:

• Ulcers inside the mouth or on the lips that do not heal
• White or dark red patches inside the mouth
• Lumps inside or around the mouth (a lump could appear on your neck)
• Bleeding, numbness, and soreness in the mouth
• Chronic halitosis
• Loose teeth in the absence of tooth decay

Diagnosis and Treatment of Oral Cancer

Squamous cell oral cancer is most common type diagnosed in smokers. Dr. Jennifer Wells and our staff can discoverer this during the oral cancer screening. Depending on the stage of the oral cancer, treatment may begin with a biopsy or an exfoliative cytology procedure that involves collecting cells from the oral cavity using a scraper.

According to the Oral Cancer Foundation, oral cancer patients may need surgery, radiation therapy, a combination of surgery and radiation therapy, or chemotherapy to eradicate oral cancer.

Smoking, Cancer and Tooth Decay

Not only is smoking the number-one cause of cancer but it is also detrimental to the overall health of your teeth and gums. Yellow teeth, bad breath, dry mouth, and expedited tooth decay are all caused by smoking, not to mention the damage smoke does to the heart, lungs and kidneys.

In other words, don’t smoke!