Restorative Dentistry

As an adult, it is your job to maintain a good home care routine when it comes to your teeth. If this does not happen, your permanent teeth can become compromised and you may find yourself needing invasive dental work down the line. To avoid costly procedures in the future, it is important to visit our doctors at Alta Loma Dental Care for professional cleanings at least twice a year.
When your dentist uses the term “restorative dentistry,” he or she is referring to the integrated management of oral health problems and restoring the mouth to a functional and esthetic state. Restorative dental procedures may include replacing missing teeth with dental bridges, tooth bonding, crowns, or dentures. The goal of these procedures is to preserve the natural teeth as much as possible. When moving forward with a restorative dental procedure, you’ll need to consider your physical health as well as your budget. Our doctors are happy to discuss these with you.
If you have questions about restorative dentistry, please give us a call. To learn about services we provide at our practice, visit www.altalomadentalcare.com for more information. To schedule an appointment in our Alta Loma, CA office, call Alta Loma Dental Care at 909-987-6268.

Extraction Site Preservation

When removing a tooth, whether it is due to dental trauma, an abscess, or periodontitis, it is important to consider what will be done with the empty space after that tooth is removed. Wisdom teeth are in the back of the mouth, so that site has the ability to heal on its own with no complications. However, if it is necessary for one of our doctors at Alta Loma Dental Care to remove another tooth, plans must be made and this is where extraction site preservation comes into play.
If a tooth is removed and nothing is done with the extraction site, the jaw bone will degenerate and change shape during healing causing the teeth to shift. This can create problems in your bite that can affect the ability to speak and chew. Just imagine chewing food with no teeth and how uncomfortable that would feel. Options for filling the space include dental implants and bridges. What you choose to do with your extraction site is your choice, and our doctors are always open to a conversation on what to do with your extraction site before removing a tooth.
If you’ve recently had teeth extracted and have questions about the site preservation process, give us a call. To learn about services we provide at our practice, visit www.altalomadentalcare.com for more information. To schedule an appointment in our Alta Loma, CA office, call Alta Loma Dental Care at 909-987-6268.

Bone Grafting

Bone grafting may not sound like what you’d come across in a typical dental appointment, but a bone graft has become a routine procedure throughout medicine to help bodies heal. The bone graft dentists perform is on the jaw bone, because a jaw bone can weaken over time if tooth loss or gum disease has left a certain portion of the jaw vulnerable. When a patient needs a dental implant to replace a lost or damaged tooth, the jaw bone needs to be strong enough to receive the implant. A bone graft is used to strengthen the jaw before the implant is placed.
A bone graft consists of harvesting bone material from a healthy part of a patient’s body and transferring it to a site that needs reinforcement. This gives the injured or deficient bone a replacement and encourages growth of new material around the site. There are synthetic options for bone grafts, but a dental graft is usually obtained from a different spot in the patient’s own mouth. The healing process can take several months, and your jaw is monitored by your dentist until it heals enough to handle the placement of an implant.
To schedule an appointment with Alta Loma Dental Care of Alta Loma, CA, call us at (909) 987-6268 or visit our website, www.altalomadentalcare.com.

Flossing

At Alta Loma Dental Care, we strive to provide the best oral care for our patients.  We also encourage you and your family to continue healthy oral care routines at home. Regular flossing is essential to maintaining oral health and you should floss once a day, either before or after brushing. Remember these tips to floss effectively:

• ·        A strand of dental floss about 18 inches long allows you to wrap the ends of the floss around a finger on each hand. This gives you excellent control over the portion of floss you are using.
• ·        The proper technique to flossing is sliding the floss between the teeth and rubbing the floss back and forth up until you reach your gums.
• ·        Pushing at your gums too hard with floss can damage your gum line and isn’t necessary to floss properly. Think of a small swooping motion as you rub the floss up to one gum, then down and back up towards the other.
• ·        As you move on to the next tooth, adjust the floss to expose an unused portion. Repeat this rubbing motion between each tooth and dispose of the floss once you are finished.

To schedule an appointment with Alta Loma Dental Care of Alta Loma, CA, call us at (909) 987-6268 or visit our website, www.altalomadentalcare.com.