OakBrook Dental Blog

A child’s oral health begins developing long before their first tooth erupts. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that children first see a dentist by their first birthday or within six months of that first tooth coming in. These infant oral health visits provide a wealth of benefits for a child’s current and future oral health. Here’s why early detection of oral health issues is so important for children’s oral health.

As your semi-annual dental checkup approaches, it’s natural to feel some apprehension. However, there’s no need to worry because sedation dentistry can significantly enhance your experience, ensuring your comfort and relaxation during your dental visit. One option available to you is nitrous oxide sedation, commonly known as “laughing gas.” Here are four crucial details to understand how it facilitates patients in receiving necessary dental care in a more serene and pleasant environment.

A dental implant is a great way to replace your missing tooth because it offers unique advantages that other methods don’t. It includes a rod that is inserted into your jawbone, which eventually fuses around it. Then it’s capped with a tooth-shaped cover customized to look like your other pearly whites. The result is a replacement that looks and feels just like the one you lost with no one the wiser! Not only that, but this also provides the necessary stimulation for your jawbone to stay strong and healthy once your tooth goes missing.

Despite this, many patients opt for other methods, like dentures or dental bridges, which seem like more affordable choices. You might not spend as much in the moment if you decide on one of these alternatives, but in the long run, you may actually end up spending more! Keep reading to learn 3 ways dental implants save money down the road.

If you’ve never had oral surgery before, you’re likely wondering about what life will look like after your wisdom tooth extraction, like the healing time, what you’ll be able to eat, and whether your stitches will dissolve on their own. Although sometimes, answers for these concerns can depend on your individual dentist’s recommendations and practices, there are some baseline expectations you can set for recovery. Read on to learn more about wisdom tooth stitches and your recovery period.

If you sometimes bite the inside of your cheek, you’re not alone. Many people worldwide indulge in this seemingly harmless tic. However, you’d actually do well to avoid it – cheek biting harms your oral health. In other words, maintaining the habit will damage your mouth. Thankfully, though, it’s possible to resist cheek-biting behavior. Your McKinney dentist can even show you how. To that end, here’s a summary of cheek biting, how it affects oral health, and tips on how to stop it.

Root canals have an unfair reputation! Despite what you’ve maybe heard through the grapevine or seen on television about the procedure, root canal therapy isn’t scary or incredibly painful at all. In fact, it actually gives your compromised tooth the best possible odds of remaining inside of your mouth, where it belongs. That said, many patients who are set to undergo the procedure still have concerns about pain afterward. Here’s what your dentist wants you to know about this process and some of the possible causes for discomfort following it, as well as when you seek professional assistance.

If you lack some pearly whites, you may be eager for dental implants. That’s only natural – these prosthetic teeth are great at restoring smiles! Still, good implant candidates must meet specific criteria; treatment will fail otherwise. Before getting dental implants, then, you might need some preliminary work. Luckily, your McKinney dentist can tell you all about it. That said, here are three dental services you may need prior to implant treatment.

If you’d rather be anywhere else in the world than seated in your dentist’s chair, you aren’t alone—in fact, it’s estimated that roughly 22% of all people skip their dental appointments simply because they’re afraid of dental work! Thankfully, modern dentistry continues to evolve, and there are now several available options for assisting patients with peacefully undergoing treatment. Here’s more about one of these options, IV sedation, and how it can make your next visit a pleasant experience.

Seeing dentists for biannual checkups is vitally important to ensuring that your oral health is in good condition. Your dentist will be able to screen you for a wide variety of oral health problems while keeping your smile nice and clean.

However, many people have anxieties surrounding the dentist’s office that hold them back from getting the care that they need. If you’re one of them, learning to manage that anxiety is key to getting the smile you deserve! Here are three tips you can use if visiting the dentist makes you nervous.

Like many people, you may grasp that tooth stains age your face. It makes sense in hindsight – a dirty, yellow smile can seem haggard and worn out. That said, did you know that teeth-grinding makes you look older too? Indeed, a short, flat tooth can appear as aged as a yellow one. Still, there is hope: your local dentist can help you keep this habit in check. To that end, here’s a summary of how grinding teeth ages you and ways to prevent it.