Organizing Your Dental Gear

Have you ever actually organized the set up of your bathroom? Like, really sat down and thought about how your different toiletries, towels, soaps, towel racks, and everything else were organized?

I haven’t. It all just kind of came together somehow over time, and now I’ve got things all in a state of disarray in my medicine cabinet, a small glass container of my facial hair grooming tools, my lotion dedicated to a certain spot on the sink, and my contact lense station posted up on the other side of the sink.

It all just sort of happens.

What’s the best way to handle your dental gear set up, though? I mean, most people sort of have their floss hidden away, their listerine out in the open, and toothbrushes in a cup, right?

While that’s what the norm is, I feel that it could be organized in a way that will get you to brush more often, floss every day, and even rinse your mouth out at least once daily.

Toothbrushes

No matter what you choose to place these in (from a cup to a specifically made toothbrush holder), they should be standing upright in order for your bristles to dry properly and not collect bacteria. I would suggest having your toothbrush holder somewhere above the sink or next to it yet not on the sink itself simply because you want to keep it away from water or moisture build up for the sake of your bristles keeping dry. Also, these two areas would be in your vision enough every time you visit the bathroom so that you’d be reminded to brush not just once a day but the recommended twice.

Mouthwash

Since most bottles of mouthwash are quite big, they take up a lot of space. Having this in a dedicated cabinet but visible to you helps to keep using it often enough.

Floss

This is perhaps the piece of dental gear that is hidden from sight the most, meaning you’re far more likely to forget to floss daily simply because you don’t see it. Rather than have it hidden in your medicine cabinet, have it out in the open near your mouthwash or even in your toothbrush holder. If it’s right by your toothbrushes, you’ll remember to floss every single time you reach for your brush.

Ultimately, this is all about keeping your stuff visible so that you don’t lapse and forget to brush, wash your mouth out with rinse, or floss your teeth.

Need For Antibiotics to Support Dental Procedures

American Heart Association has recently announced that antibiotic treatment is no longer required for the prevention of infective endocarditis which prevails in certain dental patients. With this announcement, many people tend to think whether antibiotics are required before other dental procedures.

Well, the answer of this questions is ‘yes’.

American Dental Association and American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons suggest patients to get antibiotic treatment before any dental procedure which could be required any time during two years following a total joint replacement treatment. Patients with compromised immune systems or the ones with certain health conditions are also required to get antibiotic treatment before certain dental treatments.

Patients with artificial heart valves, previous history of history of endocarditis, congenital heart conditions, and transplanted heart are also required to get antibiotic treatment before certain dental procedures, as suggested by AHA and ADA. A patient with any problem with the heart valve is also going to require antibiotic treatment prior to certain types of dental treatments.

You may not require any antibiotic treatment before the dental treatment if you have one or some of the following conditions:

• mitral valve prolapse
• rheumatic heart disease
• bicuspid valve disease
• calcified aortic stenosis
• certain congenital heart conditions

There are certain dental treatments on which the updated guidelines can be applied. Those dental treatments mainly include teeth cleaning and tooth extraction. The updated dental health guidelines mainly suggest taking care of the dental health in such a way that invasive and non-invasive dental treatments could be avoided. Moreover, the guidelines also suggest sticking to preventive dental care in such a way that the need for antibiotic treatment before dental treatments could be eliminated.

The updated guidelines are based on comprehensive studies which tell that infective endocarditis can occur if bacteria enter the bloodstream. Having that said, it is quite important to make sure that you are taking care of your oral health and hygiene because poor oral hygiene can eventually lead to the gum disease. And then bacteria find their way to the bloodstream.

Practices best oral hygiene on daily basis is important. Make sure that you are brushing and flossing your teeth on daily basis. Moreover, you are going to have to make sure that you are visiting your dentist regularly.

Restoration after Root Canal Therapy

Many of us know about the root canal therapy. It is the procedure that is aimed at removing infected tissues and nerves from the inner chamber of an infected tooth in order to prevent infection from spreading further. While this procedure itself is quite important to maintain integrity of the tooth, the importance of restoration after the procedure cannot be overlooked.

Infection usually starts with a cavity. An injury to the tooth can also serve as a precursor to the infections that can make the condition of any tooth quite miserable. While there is always a non-invasive way to deal with the infection before it reaches the tooth pulp, there is no option left for a dentist other than root canal when the infection reaches the tooth pulp.

A root canal treatment typically involves drilling of a hole from the chewing surface of the tooth. This hole makes a tunnel which reaches the infected area of the tooth pulp. The main purpose of this tunnel is to make the removal of infected pulp possible. The infected pulp is removed and the emptied chamber is filled with a medicated material in order to avoid further infection.

Above mentioned is the major part of root canal procedure but it is not complete yet. There is an effective restoration needed for the tooth to remain strong, functional and aesthetically normal. Normal root canal involves drilling of a hole to remove the tooth pulp. If this drilling of hole is the only structural damage done to the tooth, the only restoration needed is the filling of the tooth.

However, the root canal procedure can get complicated when there is major structural damage to the tooth already done due to cavity or tooth decay. In this scenario, filling is not going to restore the tooth. Crowning seems to be the most suitable option in order to ensure proper restoration of the tooth. Prior to crowning, the dentist may choose to build up a base for the crown to sit well. This buildup can also be referred to as core. To hold the core in place, a metal or ceramic post may be used.

A post can be pre-made in order to use with the core. Or the core and the post can be custom-made in case the patient has specific requirements. The second scenario, in which custom-made objects are used, is considered when there is sufficient damage done to the tooth and only extensive measures can save it. This entire work is done after taking proper measurements. When the tooth is fixed with the help of core and post, a custom-made crown is attached to finalize the treatment.