Services
Examination
During your dental examination, we look at your teeth, gums and mouth to diagnosis and provide advice. We ask about your general health and any problems you haveve had with your teeth, mouth or gums since your last visit.
We ask give you advice on your diet, any smoking and alcohol use as well as teeth-cleaning habits.
If necessary, the session includes taking X-rays, a scale and polish and planning for further treatment.
Fillings
Fillings are used to repair a hole in a tooth caused by decay. The most common type of filling is an amalgam, made from a mixture of metals including mercury, silver, tin, copper and zinc. Your dentist will offer the most appropriate type of filling according to your clinical needs. This includes white fillings, if appropriate.
Crowns and veneers
A crown is a type of cap that completely covers a real tooth. It's made from either metal, or porcelain and metal, and is fixed in your mouth. Crowns can be fitted where a tooth has broken, decayed or been damaged, or just to make a tooth look better.
To fit a crown, the old tooth will need to be drilled down so it's like a small peg onto which the crown will be fixed. It can take some time for the lab to prepare a new crown, so you probably won’t have the crown fitted on the same day.
Veneers are new facings for teeth which disguise a discoloured (rather than a damaged) tooth. To fit a veneer, the front of the tooth is drilled away a little. An impression is taken, and a thin layer of porcelain is fitted over the front of the tooth (similar to how a false fingernail is applied).
Veneers are generally only available privately.
Dental Implant
Implants are a fixed alternative to removable dentures. They may be the only option if the loss of teeth has caused the mouth to shrink so that it can no longer support dentures. You can use implants to replace just a single tooth or several teeth.
Implants are only available privately, Please call to make an appointment for a consultation session. Consultation fee is £100 which will be refunded if you go ahead with the treatment.
Our experienced, highly professional dental implant team in Watford Road Dental Practice are here to help.
Teeth Whitening
Teeth whitening involves bleaching your teeth to make them a lighter colour. Teeth whitening cannot make your teeth brilliant white, but it can lighten the existing colour by several shades.
Standard teeth whitening involves several visits to the dentist plus sessions at home wearing a mouthguard containing bleaching gel. The whole process takes a couple of months.
A newer procedure called laser whitening or power whitening is availble and takes about an hour.
Teeth whitening is cosmetic and therefore generally only available privately.
Root canal therapy
Root canal treatment (also called endodontics) deals with infections at the centre of a tooth (the root canal system).
When the blood or nerve supply of the tooth has become infected, if root canal treatment is not carried out, the infection will spread and the tooth may need to be taken out.
During treatment, all the infection is removed from inside the root canal system. The root canal is filled and the tooth is sealed with a filling or crown to stop it from becoming infected again. Root canal treatment usually requires two or three visits to your dentist.
Bridges
A bridge is a fixed replacement for a missing tooth or teeth. It's made by taking an impression of the surrounding teeth, which will eventually support the bridge. A bridge is usually created from precious metal and porcelain and will be fixed in your mouth (unlike dentures, which can be removed).
Dentures
More commonly known as false teeth, dentures are fitted in place of natural teeth. A full set is used to replace all your teeth. A part set is used to replace one or more missing teeth. Dentures are custom-made using impressions (mouldings) from your gums. They are usually made from metal or plastic.
They are re removable so you can clean them, although part dentures can be brushed at the same time as your other teeth. A full set needs to be removed and soaked in a cleaning solution.
Dentures are important if you lose your natural teeth as losing your teeth makes it difficult to chew your food, which will adversely affect your diet and may cause your facial muscles to droop.