New Patient Exam

We always welcome new patients to our practice. Our office philosophy is to intercept and prevent dental diseases. To do this, what we need first is a complete picture of your present oral health, as well as your dental and medical history. Your initial evaluation will include an evaluation of past, existing and potential problems. X-rays and an examination of your oral tissues for decay and gum/bone diseases are used to identify hidden problems. If a malocclusion is present or developing or you have a cosmetic concern, we may also take diagnostic impressions or photographs.

Dental Emergency

Dental emergencies can be frightening and often painful. Prompt treatment is generally required to alleviate pain and ensure oral and overall health. Daily time is allotted for emergencies. Pain, Swelling, trauma, broken dentures, or urgent cosmetic problems will be addressed as soon as possible. If you're dealing with a dental emergency, call us immediately at 585-865-4674 (it is helpful if you call us early in the day), and we will schedule you in as soon as possible. We provide after-hour emergency services for our existing patients whenever possible. Should you call during after hours, our voicemail will let you know how to get in touch with us.

Oral Cancer Screening

Early detection of oral cancer is vital; with the rise in oral cancer rate, screening should become a routine of your dental visits. We perform oral cancer screening on our patients at every hygiene appointment.

Teeth Cleaning and Periodic Exam

Our hygienists provide comfortable and thorough dental cleanings. Your cleaning will consist of scaling to remove plaque and tartar and polishing to make your teeth shine. Our dentist will always take time afterward to examine your oral health and provide oral health care advice and recommendations.

Caries (Tooth Decay) Prevention

Tooth decay is caused by bacterial infection and is a preventable disease. We will work with you to develop a decay prevention program that suits you best. We emphasize eliminating the cause of the infection and also recommend medications and mouth rinses that will make your teeth more resistant to tooth decay. For people who have severely compromised immune systems and high risk of caries, we make custom trays that hold special medication to fight off tooth decay.

Periodontal (Gum Diseases) Therapy

Non-Surgical Treatments of Gum Diseases:

• Prophylaxis (Cleaning): Removes bacteria plaque, stains, and calculus above the gum line.
• Scaling and Root Planning (Deep Cleaning): Removes bacteria plaque, calculus, and infected tissues below the gum line.
• Antibiotic Microsphere (Arestin) Treatment: Inserts antibiotic microspheres directly into periodontal pockets.
• Occlusal (Bite) Adjustment: Reduces trauma to periodontal tissues.

Surgical Treatments of Gum Diseases:

Periodontal surgery is necessary when the tissue around your teeth is unhealthy and cannot be repaired with non-surgical therapies. When you need extensive surgical treatments, we may refer you to gum specialists (periodontists). Following are the four types of surgical treatments most commonly prescribed:

• Pocket reduction procedures: Include gingivectomy, gingivoplasty, frenectomy, flap surgery and osseous surgery
• Regenerative procedures: Include bone grafting and guided tissue regeneration procedures
• Soft tissue grafts: Use tissue from a donor site to cover exposed roots
• Crown lengthening: Lay the groundwork for restorative procedures (fillings and crowns) and for an esthetic smile

Periodontal Maintenance:

Periodontal maintenance is vital for preserving good oral health. This is often called "cleaning" while it in fact involves thorough re-evaluation of your periodontal health, and re-treatment when necessary. A "cleaning" (ADA code D1110) is performed on a patient with no history of periodontal disease, and it only involves removal of plaques, calculus and stains from the crowns of teeth, not the root surfaces. Periodontal maintenance (ADA code D4910) is performed in patients at a 3-month interval and often involves removal of plaque, calculus and stain from the root surfaces of the teeth below the gum line. A maintenance protocol is established for each patient based on a complete periodontal evaluation.

Cosmetic Dentistry

This term covers a broad range of services with the purpose of improving the esthetics of your teeth and your smile. A beautiful smile is an invaluable asset. We can improve your smile through teeth whitening, cosmetic bonding, veneers, metal-free crowns and bridges and custom staining of teeth.

Teeth Whitening / Tooth Bleaching

We offer external teeth whitening, including a powerful one-visit professional chairside teeth whitening and customized, take-home professional teeth whitening. We also offer internal tooth whitening for stained or darkened Root Canal Treated teeth. Soon after starting treatment at our office, you will start to see a whiter and brighter smile. With our whitening services, the effects of coffee, smoking, tea, and other causes for tooth discoloration will disappear. Schedule an appointment for a consultation with us to see if you are a candidate for teeth whitening.

Esthetic (Tooth Colored) Fillings or Restorations

Our office provides tooth colored fillings. We opted not to provide the silver amalgam fillings because of their poor esthetics and mercury contents that could harm our environment. The new generation of tooth colored fillings requires less tooth structure removal during placement and has superb mechanical strength and bonds well to the natural tooth structure, increasing the overall strength of the tooth, unlike silver (amalgam) fillings that have no bonding properties. Tooth colored fillings are technique sensitive and require extreme care during placement process. Our dentist has gone through extensive training and is very comfortable in handling the new filling materials.

If you dislike the look that old silver restorations give your mouth or your existing fillings have problems, white fillings are the perfect solution! Your old silver restorations will be replaced with tooth colored fillings, resulting in a smile you can be proud to show off.

Veneers

A veneer is a thin porcelain or ceramic restoration that is applied and bonded to the front of your existing tooth structure, like fabricating a new “facings” for your teeth. Porcelain veneers are an excellent choice for correcting gaps between teeth, crooked or misaligned teeth, or discoloration resistant to dental bleaching.

When applied to the tooth, a veneer is virtually undetectable. Due to its thin nature, the veneer will take on the natural coloration of your teeth and allows us to be quite conservative in removing tooth structure.

Invisalign® (Invisible Braces):

Invisalign® takes a cutting-edge approach to straightening teeth, using a custom-made series of aligners created just for you. These aligner trays are made of smooth, comfortable and virtually invisible plastic that you wear over your teeth. Wearing the aligners will gradually and gently shift your teeth into place, based on the exact movements your dentist plans out for you. There are no metal brackets to attach and no wires to tighten. You just pop in a new set of aligners approximately every two weeks, until your treatment is complete. You’ll achieve a great smile with little interference in your daily life. The best part about the whole process is that most people won't even know you're straightening your teeth.

Dr. Chen obtained her certificate as an Invisalign® provider back in 2004. Please call our office for a free consultation if you are interested.

Crowns and Bridges

Crowns are necessary when a tooth is severely damaged, cracked, had root canal therapy or has suffered from advanced decay and cannot be fixed with bonded filling material. Crowns cover the remaining tooth and restore its function, strength, and esthetics.

Bridges can be utilized when tooth loss occurs due to gum disease, decay, or injury. The loss of the tooth can create greater problems for your dental health if it is not corrected. The teeth next to the missing tooth (or teeth) can begin to move and result in pain and discomfort, and can look unsightly. With a bridge, your doctor can close any gaps in your mouth. The bridge looks and acts just like natural teeth, is permanently cemented, and helps to maintain the position of the rest of your teeth.

Several crown and bridge material options are available and our doctors will discuss these on an individual basis depending on the area of the mouth that needs to be restored. We offer metal-free as well as traditional metal or metal-ceramic crowns and bridges.

Endodontic Therapy (Root Canals)

We provide top notch endodontic treatment with the latest technology. Having a root canal is no more painful than a simple filling. The procedure can be completed in one visit in most cases.

Root canal therapy is needed when a cavity has reached the pulp of a tooth, causing an infection of the nerve, or when severe trauma has affected the tooth. Regular checkups with your dentist help to avoid and prevent the need for endodontic therapy. But once the pulp has become infected, it must be treated to avoid further issues since it cannot heal by itself. Some signs that a pulp is infected include sensitivity to hot or cold foods or liquids, pain, swelling, or even a bad taste in the mouth. For some patients no symptoms are obvious and they are unaware a problem even exists until they are seen by their dentist for an exam.

When endodontic therapy is performed, your dentist will clean out the infected pulp, and disinfect the canals of the tooth. Once the area has been disinfected, the canals of the tooth are filled with a special material to prevent from further infections, and help in the healing of the tooth. Sometimes a core build-up, bonded post, and crown are necessary to fully restore a tooth.

Dental Implants

A natural tooth consists of a root and a crown. When you lose a tooth, its root can be replaced by a small dental implant made of titanium, the same time-tested material used by surgeons for artificial joints. Time is allowed for bone to heal and grow around the dental implant, and the bone bonds with the titanium, creating a strong foundation for artificial teeth. A support post (abutment) is then placed on the implant and a new replacement tooth (crown) is placed on top of the abutment.

Dental implants are becoming a cornerstone of dentistry and provide the best option for replacing missing teeth in certain situations. We will provide a comprehensive evaluation if you have missing tooth/teeth and are considering dental implant therapy. We can place a single or multiple implants. We have multiple options available for restoring function of a single missing tooth or the entire dentition. We strive to make this option affordable for all our patients, so you can enjoy the full benefits of this technology.

Dentures (Complete and Partial)

If you choose not to have dental implants or you suffer too much bone loss, our dentures are the answer.

Complete dentures are used to replace a person's teeth when all the teeth are all missing. Removable dentures are designed to restore the health, function, and beauty of your smile. They are crafted to fit your individual mouth comfortably and snugly. When in place, dentures can:

• Help restore your ability to eat and speak
• Replace your missing teeth
• Prevent facial sagging
• Improve the appearance of your smile

We offer a wide range of choice of dentures, including esthetic metal-free partials and implant-supported options. We can create and place your dentures in just a few visits. Your dentures will be made to look and feel like natural teeth so that you can feel confident every time you smile. We invite you to call our office at 585-865-4674 today if you have missing teeth and want to learn more about the benefits of dentures.

Denture Repairs & Relines

Dentures and bridges may break, chip, and/or stain and may become loose or unfit with time. Although remaking a denture or a bridge is always an option, repair and reline can be done in some cases to improve the esthetics and function of the prosthesis. Minor repairs can be done in our office the same day. Major repairs may need some time for laboratory processing.

Extractions

Tooth extractions may be recommended for any number of reasons. Some teeth are extracted because they are severely decayed; others may have advanced periodontal disease, or have broken in a way that they cannot be repaired. Other teeth may need removal because they are in preparation for orthodontic treatment, or poorly positioned in the mouth (such as impacted teeth).

Extractions of Wisdom Teeth: Not all wisdom teeth need to be removed. When the teeth are impacted and having pain and symptoms or causing problems to adjacent teeth and tissues, they should be removed. A consultation session will be scheduled before the surgery to discuss the benefits and risks of the procedure.

Biopsy

Oral tissue biopsy may be necessary for lesions that cannot be diagnosed on the basis of the history and clinical findings alone. A thorough inspection of the oral cavity is performed as a part of any complete head and neck examination. Approximately 10% of patients who are examined will have some abnormality of the oral mucosa. Biopsy is often the definitive procedure that provides tissue for microscopic analysis when additional information is required to guide any indicated therapy.

Biopsy is indicated for the assessment of any unexplained oral mucosal abnormality that persists despite treatment or the removal of local irritants. Malignancy is suspected when persistent oral mucosal lesions are red or red and white or when they are ulcerated, indurated, or fixed to deeper tissues. Persistent lesions that bleed easily or grow rapidly should also alert the clinician to the possibility of malignancy.

TMJ Pain and Headache

Temporomandibular Disorder is fairly common and symptoms include, but are not limited to:

• Clicking/popping/grating sound from either joint
• Ringing or fullness in either ear
• Sore facial, chewing or neck muscles
• Headaches of unknown
• Difficulty staying asleep at night
• Grinding of teeth during the day and/or at night time

Pain in temporomandibular joint ("TMJ") and headache associated with temporomandibular disorders can be treated effectively once a definitive diagnosis is established. We provide comprehensive evaluation of TMJ and offer treatment protocols based on the results of our diagnostic workups. Diagnostic study casts, radiographic examinations and magnetic resonance imaging are sometimes necessary for differential diagnosis. We offer non-invasive and reversible treatment protocols to our TMJ patients.

Treatment may include:

• Occlusal (bite) Splint Therapy
• Selective bite adjustment (even out tooth contacts)
• Restoration of teeth to adjust or support bite
• Replacement of missing teeth to adjust or support bite

Mouth Guards

Sport Mouth Guards

Mouth guards should be used by anyone — children and adults — who play contact sports such as football, boxing, soccer, ice hockey, basketball, lacrosse, and field hockey. However, even those participating in noncontact sports (for example, gymnastics) and any recreational activity (for example, skateboarding, mountain biking) that might pose a risk of injury to the mouth would benefit from wearing a protective mouth guard.

Our sports mouth guards are pressure processed in a professional dental laboratory. Research indicates that this type of mouth guard provides superior protection against concussion injuries to the brain.

Night Guards:

Night Guards should be worn by anyone who is diagnosed with bruxism (a teeth grinding problem) and who has extensive fixed dental works such as crowns and bridges and implants.

Bite Splints:

Adults and children who grind their teeth at night should have a nocturnal bite plate or bite splint made to prevent teeth damage. Bite Splints could also help relieving TMJ pain and headache due to TMJ disorder.

Wearing a properly fitted mouth guard is particularly important and we can help you choosing the mouth guard that will provide the best protection for your unique mouth work.

Snoring and Sleep Apnea Appliances

Millions of people throughout the U.S. are affected by snoring. Many people suffer from Sleep Apnea. If left untreated, sleep apnea can result in a growing number of health problems, including:

• High blood pressure
• Stroke
• Heart failure, irregular heartbeats, and heart attacks
• Diabetes
• Depression
• Worsening of ADHD
• Headaches

In addition, untreated sleep apnea may be responsible for poor performance in everyday activities, such as at work and school, motor vehicle crashes, and academic underachievement in children and adolescents.

Snoring and some forms of sleep apnea can be treated with an oral appliance worn in the mouth during sleep. Most appliances work by positioning the lower jaw slightly forward of its usual rest position. This small change is, in many people, enough to keep the airway open during sleep. For patients with sleep apnea, a definite diagnosis has to be made through comprehensive sleeping studies. Patient's physician is usually consulted if a snoring appliance is planned.

Nitrous Oxide (Laughing Gas) Sedation

Dental fear is one of the most common reasons for people to delay dental treatments. Though the current dental and medical technologies allow dentistry to be performed without pain and discomfort, the environment in a dental office may not be appealing to everyone. We provide nitrous oxide sedation for our fearful patients. Nitrous oxide is a safe and effective method of conscious sedation.

For more information on conscious sedation, click here.

Second Opinion and Consultation

Dentistry is not an exact science. There are usually different options to address a specific dental problem. Dentists may have different opinions about a specific treatment option. It is always wise to seek a second or third opinion when extensive treatments are planned. If you are not sure how to handle your dental problems, we can provide an independent professional opinion. Our office staff will be happy to assist you in obtaining copies of the necessary records so that we can provide that opinion.

Our team looks forward to meeting you! For more information, or to schedule an appointment, contact us today at 585-865-4674!