Dental Services Santa Rosa

Preventative dentistry is the area of dentistry aimed to help people prevent oral disease and its further development. Preventative dentistry includes not just in-office dental care, but at-home treatments as well.

Some examples of at-home treatments include:

• Regular brushing – the American Dental Association (ADA) recommends brushing two times a day and directly after meals, when possible.
• Regular flossing – the ADA recommends flossing at least once a day.
• Rinsing with anti-bacterial mouth wash – recommended after each brushing

Some examples of preventative dentistry you might receive in-office include:

• Prophylaxis (cleaning of the teeth- removes built up calculus (plaque).
• Inspection of the teeth, mouth, and gums- using visual and tactile exams, x-rays, and oral cancer screening, the overall health and presence of oral cancer can be revealed.

Restorative dentistry serves to restore teeth that may have been damaged through common oral health problems or more serious dental issues. Tooth decay, wear, and damage are a natural result from the intense workout and bacterial influx our mouths get every day. The team at the practice of Dr. Sullivan can restore your damaged teeth with natural-looking materials, like composite resin fillings and porcelain crowns, inlays, and onlays. This means that you can retain an all-white smile. The benefit of restorative dentistry is that many of the procedures overlap with cosmetic dentistry procedures allowing for modern restorations that are designed to improve the look and feel of your smile and enhance your overall appearance.

Often time’s restorative dental procedures are a result of a patient who either has overlooked the necessity of routine dental care or has a dental problem that was not visible by the naked eye. This is why we recommend visiting Dr. Sullivan’s dental practice every six months to check for signs of tooth decay, gum disease or other dental health issues that may be prevented before they become costly or more serious. Below is a list of the common restorative dentistry procedures that we provide to help you with issues that may affect your teeth, gums or smile.

Cosmetic dentistry includes dental procedures that improve a person’s teeth and gums, resulting in a better, more noticeable smile. Although the term cosmetic dentistry is commonly referred to as redundant, since general dentistry is aimed at improving the look and feel of a patient’s teeth; the term focuses more of an emphasis on improving the smile and overall appearance of the teeth.

We offer the following cosmetic dentistry procedures at the dental practice of Dr. Sullivan:

• Dental Implants – a cosmetic dentistry procedure that is used to replace missing teeth. Dental implants are a long-term solution that results in a healthy, natural looking, and natural feeling smile. Dental implants are surgically implanted into the jawbone and can be a solution for anyone, with the exception of children, looking to fill in the gaps created by missing teeth and create a brilliant smile.
• Dental Bonding – the application of a tooth-colored resin material to improve the appearance of discolored or chipped teeth, to close the gaps between teeth, to change the shape of a tooth, or to make a tooth look longer. Tooth bonding is performed by using adhesives and a high intensity curing light. Another use for dental bonding is as a substitute for amalgam fillings and to protect a portion of a tooth that has exposed nerves or exposed root from receding gums.
• Tooth Colored Fillings – A silicon dioxide-filled, tooth-colored plastic mixture, composite resins can restore teeth to an attractive, healthy state. Composite resins represent several advantages over traditional silver, or amalgam,dental fillings.
• Zoom Teeth Whitening – A safe and effective system, Zoom! Whitening is used in over 15,000 dental offices internationally. The painless process can remove the toughest stains and create a dazzlingly white, long-lasting smile in just one hour.
• Lumineers & No-prep Veneers – Lumineers and “no prep” veneers are very thin veneers that be used with little or no preparation of the teeth and have the ability to completely transform the appearance of permanently stained, chipped, discolored, or misaligned teeth.
• Dental Bridges– A dental bridge is used when a missing tooth must be replaced as a missing tooth can cause a variety of problems and affect the appearance of your smile.

Endodontics is a branch of dentistry recognized by the American Dental Association involving diagnosis and treatment of the pulp (root canal) and surrounding tissues of the tooth. When you look at your tooth in the mirror, what you see is the crown. The rest of the tooth, the portion hidden beneath the gum line, is called the root. Though the outer portion of the root is a hard tissue called dentin, the inside channel or “root canal” contains a pulp of soft tissue, blood vessels and nerves.

The endodontist examines, diagnoses, and treats diseases and destructive processes, including injuries and abnormalities of dental pulps and periapical tissues of the teeth.

An orthodontist prevents and treats alignment problems in the mouth, teeth, and jaw. Using braces, retainers, and other devices, an orthodontist helps straighten a person’s teeth and correct the way the jaws line up.

Orthodontists treat children for many problems, including crowded or overlapping teeth or problems with jaw growth and tooth development which can be genetic. These tooth and jaw problems may also be caused by tooth decay, losing baby teeth too soon, accidents, or habits like thumb sucking.

Orthodontic problems require specialized care. Patients who have dental and facial irregularities should see an orthodontist.

To learn more about the Dental Treatments and Services we provide, or to schedule an appointment please contact your Santa Rosa Dentist Dr. Sullivan Today at (707) 545-5260!