Brushing and flossing and hygiene visits are 90% about helping you fight bacteria from PERIODONTAL DISEASE, not cavities. We can help with your cavities, but perio disease is extremely difficult and costly to manage. CAVITIES (especially for people older than 20 years) are mainly from diet, especially if you are minimally competent at brushing.

What most people don’t understand is how intricate the crypts are in the tops of people’s teeth. They are so constricted that not even the best toothbrush bristle can get in there…but bacteria can. They spit out acids over time and create big ol’ cavities below the initial surface. So, it is entirely possible for an honest dentist to find 10 teeth with acidic breakdown, especially if someone hasn’t seen a dentist who is AWARE of this issue.

Poke-poke-poke-does-it-stick catches these cavities AFTER the roof has collapsed. Wouldn’t you want to fix a roof leak before the kitchen has a “sunroof”? Radiographs (xrays) are great at detecting issues between the teeth, but don’t help us in the middle of the tooth.

The only way to deal with these crypts is to seal them off BEFORE bacteria get there. If the tooth has been in the mouth more than 6 months, you are better off NOT sealing it and addressing the cavities when it is first detected. My office has a DiagnoDent laser cavity detector which really helps patients see that I’m not making this stuff up! I also show copious gorgeous digital photos of these surfaces so patients know I’m not taking them for a ride.

There are some dentists who are in such a hurry that they don’t explain this stuff to you. Here’s a tip about dentistry: we really don’t make much money unless we are doing CROWNS, not fillings and radiographic images. If a dentist really wants to make money, he’ll shut up and let Chris’ 10 lesions brew until he can recommend 10 CROWNS.

Crowns are great, but only for teeth that are in such deep you-know-what, that only a tooth-looking-thimble will prevent it from exploding when you bite anything firmer than a banana.

Yes, there are unethical dentists out there, but in all likelihood the guy is right and Chris will save mucho dinero by addressing these problems BEFORE the roof caves in.

OK, I just watched that “smoking tooth” video and be VERY skeptical of the info in this video. Mercury in amalgams is bound and the main release of vapor happens when the restoration is removed with the dental handpiece (all fillngs, roofs, tires, etc fail). What does this vapor CAUSE? (let’s be pragmatic) The video only claims that “surely” this is toxic, but there is no sufficient evidence of that – anywhere. The tooth preparation for amalgam fillings IS more aggressive, but what about “the children” (This is a classic scare tactic). I could go on, but there are three main points about this:
1) Dentists get a higher fee from ins companies to do composite restorations. If we can generate more revenue from these, wouldn’t the ADA’s journal have article after article urging people to replace those amalgams with composites?
2) ALL FILLINGS FAIL – In fact, the edges of composite restorations leak WAY before amalgams, so the claim that amalgam will send you on a spiral of high cost crowns, “root canals” (that’s like saying “knees”), and extractions is a silly one. Composite restorations have to be replaced with bigger, bigger, bigger ones, so crowns and other desperate measures are probably coming sooner with a series of composites.
3) Composites restorations, the alternative to amalgams, contain Bis-GMA, which mimicked estrogen in lab rats. I wonder if that could have a toxic effect on the body long term?????

Both amalgams and composites are super ways to help you fight off bacteria. We’ll probably be phasing out amalgam mainly because of the inability to safely dispose of it to the environment.

Beware of that anit-bruxism scheme, too. Radiographs don’t confirm that “the bite is aligned”. That guy doesn’t have a clue about harmonious centric jaw relations…. I could go on for days about that ad…but I digress.

Dana McCall, DDS – Raleigh
http://www.danamccall.com