People always hear about breakthroughs in modern medicine, and yet many folks tend to ignore one of the most important areas of their body, the mouth. Part of the problem is a fear of the dentist or the procedures they may perform, but Dentists are like any other doctors. Their primary goal in life is to eliminate problems with the teeth and reduce suffering in their patients. The former is possible through a wide array of procedures while the latter is often handled by eliminating infections, the use of mild analgesics, or removing the damaged tooth.
In this day of modern dentistry where feats like dental implants and thin veneers are possible, there are still a lot of adults who hate to visit Dentists in Littleton. To make this process easier, today’s dentists have several tools at hand. The first are simple things like music and video to keep the patient distracted. If that isn’t enough, the dentist can apply a bit of nitrous oxide to reduce the patient’s awareness of the dental procedure. Nitrous is a relatively harmless gas when used in small amounts, and its effects wear off quite quickly. This means that the patient shouldn’t need help to get home if this gas has been used. More advanced therapies for highly adverse patients include intravenous delivery of medications or a pill that is taken before the procedure begins.
It is important to discuss all options with the Dentists in Littleton since there are more ways of repairing a problem than people realize. For example, a severe cavity can be fixed by simply drilling out the decayed material and packing the tooth with a filler. A better option would be to thoroughly check that the decay isn’t in the root, remove the root pulp if necessary and eliminate all the damaged shell. Then, when the tooth is properly prepared, place a crown over the remainder so the tooth is protected from the stress of biting or chewing. Still another alternative would be to completely remove the damaged tooth, insert an anchor in the jawbone, and place a crown over the stud. This is known as an implant.
