This procedure is not only convenient for patients with busy schedules but for people who just hate visiting the dentist, for any reason. The CEREC restoration system gives beautiful, natural all-ceramic restorations – crowns, onlays and inlays. The procedure involves using a computer to gain a vantage point when sculpting it — getting a better fit than most lab work.

Here are some reasons why CEREC may be a good option:

• No temporaries; It takes just one visit for the real thing.
• The material is similar to enamel-natural look and feel.
• No need for impression trays.
• Result is a beautiful, natural smile with color-matched ceramic.
• Proven success worldwide.

The procedure is simple. Your family dentist, such as Wayzata Dental & Smile Spa, will determine if CEREC is the appropriate treatment for your case. He may determine if you need inlays, onlays, or full crown. The process also involves removing any decay or weak tooth tissue. This treatment uses a sophisticated system of designing and making high quality, metal-free dental restorations in one visit. CEREC utilizes 3D photography and CAD/CAM technology to assist a dentist in designing a virtual restoration without taking impressions and can build the actual restoration while you are still in the chair.

As a Minnetonka cosmetic dental office, we offer other treatments including teeth whitening and veneers. You can conveniently make an appointment online or give us a call.

The Procedures Involved:
Most insurance policies and discount programs have savings for preventative care. On the other hand, savings for serious procedures such as root canals, crowns, and dentures will vary more substantially between plans. Some dental treatments are not covered at all.

Consider what you need the most. Do you need discounts for checkups, denture adjustments, implants or something else? Make sure the program you choose offers a low price for the treatment or procedure you need.

How Soon Do You Need to See a Dentist?
If you need crowns, dentures, and braces, there may be a waiting period – some can be up to 12 months. But, you will find discount plans that have no waiting period.

However, if you are in an emergency and require help with your dental problem right away, the waiting period for certain procedures or for your plan to activate can really determine which one you will choose. Call the insurance company and get the specifics on this.

Choosing Your Dentist
You want to find a good family dentist but you need to take several factors into account. Overall, discount plans are an affordable alternative to insurance that can greatly reduce your out-of-pocket expenses at the dental office. Just like anything you spend money on, make sure you do your homework before enrolling in a program.

You can always ask a dentist of your choice for suggestions. If you are looking for a family dentist, contact us at Wayzata Dental & SmileSpa. We are a Plymouth family dentistry here to help you. Give us a call or contact us online.

With CEREC, you don’t have to wait for the crown to arrive from a lab, and you don’t have to visit our office for a second appointment. It’s fast and convenient. CEREC also eliminates the need for messy impressions and temporary crowns. This state-of-the-art technology is backed by decades of research and delivers results that are highly esthetic, durable, and long-lasting. Wayzata Dental & SmileSpa, a Minnetonka cosmetic dentistry, is pleased to offer this comfort- and convenience-enhancing technology to patients.
But what are dental crowns?

Dental crowns are most often made of gold or porcelain, although they can also be made of stainless steel. Stainless steel crowns are typically used for primary teeth in children, because they’re temporary and not designed for long-term wear.

Yes, gold crowns are still worn and are biocompatible – they will not fracture. They’re generally reserved for teeth that don’t show when you smile. Porcelain crowns are often built on a metal base to provide additional strength and support for back teeth. All-porcelain crowns, which contain no metal, provide an excellent solution to restore front teeth and maintain a natural-looking smile.

Visit us at Wayzata Dental. Our dentist, Dr. Jason McDowell, and staff are committed to helping you find best and most natural option for your teeth. We will direct you in the right direction!

Cosmetic dentistry is a branch of medicine, performed to improve the facial appeal, smile and beauty of your teeth. If you visit a cosmetic dentist will focus on altering existing dental arrangement and features to increase aesthetic appeal.

How can this be performed? This may be accomplished in a variety of ways, for example with cosmetic implants, tooth whitening or porcelain veneers. Moreover, the results of cosmetic dental work are far more than just visually appealing; it can have positive effects for your well-being like in your overall confidence. That is why millions of people are seeking a family dentist who can treat the family for routine dental work as well as handle cosmetic dentistry.

With cosmetic dentistry, you can address a number of concerns including discolored, crooked or gapped teeth, uneven and gummy smiles, crowded dentures and jaw structures, the need for crowns, protection and bridges in the teeth.

If you want to go to a family dentist that also focuses on cosmetic dentistry, consider our office, Wayzata Dental and SmileSpa. We are a Plymouth cosmetic dentistry that can meet all your dental needs from preventative care to teeth whitening to Invisilign. Contact us at today at www.wayzatadental.com for more information.

What are Crowns?
Crowns cap or cover a damaged tooth. Besides strengthening a damaged tooth, a crown also improves the tooth’s appearance. A crown sometimes is placed on top of an implant to provide a similar shape to a tooth and also can match the color of your natural teeth. Of course, there are other materials you can use for a crown such as gold and metal alloys, acrylic and ceramic. Metal alloys are sometimes stronger and your dentist may use them for back teeth.

You may need a crown for various reasons including:
• Protect a weak tooth from breaking
• Replace a large filling when there isn’t enough tooth intact
• Rebuild a broken tooth
• Attach a bridge
• Cover a discolored or poorly shaped tooth or an implant

What are Bridges?
If you are missing more than one or more teeth, your dentist may recommend a bridge. Your teeth will shift if you have missing teeth resulting in a bad bite. The imbalance of your teeth may lead to gum disease and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders.

Bridges are cemented to the natural teeth or implants surrounding the empty space. These teeth serve as anchors for the bridge. A replacement tooth is attached to the crowns. You do have a choice in materials for bridges. Your family dentist can help you decide what to use based on the location of the missing tooth as well as other important considerations and total cost.

How Long do Crowns and Bridges Last?
Crowns and bridges can last forever with proper dental care. To keep your crown or bridges in place and healthy, you should practice good oral hygiene. A bridge can lose its support if the teeth or bone holding it in place are damaged by dental disease.

As with any dental treatments, it is important to keep your gums and teeth healthy by brushing and flossing daily. Getting regular dental check-ups and cleanings are just as important.

What is a Crown?
A dental crown is a tooth-shaped covering or cap that is placed over a tooth – covering the tooth to restore its shape and size, strength or to improve its look. When cemented into place, the crown fully encases the entire visible portion of a tooth that is above the gums. There are many reasons why the dentist wants to give you a crown. Here are a few reasons:

• To protect a weak tooth from breaking or to hold together parts of a cracked tooth.
• To cover severely discolored teeth or misshaped or broken teeth.
• To restore a broken tooth or a tooth that has been worn down.
• To cover and support a tooth with a large filling when there isn’t a lot of tooth left.
• To hold a dental bridge in place and to cover a dental implant.

There are a few steps that take place when getting a crown. The first step involves examining and preparing the tooth, and the second visit involves placement of the permanent crown. You need to remember that since dental crowns are temporary until a permanent crown is ready, most dentists suggest that a few precautions be taken including avoiding sticky, chewy food such as gum as well as hard food and minimizing use of the side of your mouth.

There are problems that can develop when wearing a crown such as discomfort or sensitivity. You may want to brush your teeth with toothpaste designed for sensitive teeth. Pain or sensitivity that occurs when you bite down usually means that the crown is too high on the tooth. If this is the case, call the dentist to get it fixed. Other problems includes a chipped crown, loose crowns, crowns that have an improper fit and possible allergic reactions.

At Wayzata Dental and SmileSpa, we use advanced dental technology and experienced staff to solve the dental problems you are experiencing. Visit our website and see how we can help you.

• Opening bottles with your teeth. We invented bottle openers to do this job so there is no need to place so much stress on your teeth. Opening bottles can chip away the enamel and often leads to cracked and broken teeth.
• Crunching ice blocks. Ice is rock hard and I’m sure you wouldn’t consider crunching your way through a pile of rocks – so why do it with ice? If you do have a liking for ice, then consider cracked ice or ice chips instead. Any hard substance such as ice (or rocks) can chip enamel, crack and break teeth, and, in the case of ice, stab or cut gums as well. Gum injuries open the door for infection and serious gum diseases.
• Picking at teeth using the wrong products. Food often gets stuck between teeth, and there are products available that can help to clean those food particles out. You can buy special pics and floss that are beneficial for your teeth. Avoid using anything that comes to hand – you could cause more harm than good.
• The bottom line is simple. If you don’t use the right products on your teeth, you are going to cause long term damage. Tooth pics and floss are cheap products when you compare their costs to bridges, crowns and veneers, so consider them investments in the future health of your teeth, and your wallet.

A couple of visits to a cosmetic dentist can work wonders. Discolored teeth can be cleaned and whitened. Crooked teeth can be straightened, and teeth with odds sizes can be worked on to make them a better fit in the mouth. Long teeth can be shortened while short teeth can be lengthened, or at least made to look a little longer. A cosmetic dentist can even remove what appears to be a big gummy smile, reduce the gums so you display a great looking balanced tooth and gum smile.

Cosmetic dentistry has come a long way over the last twenty years. If you ever watch those makeover programs, you will often notice that a cosmetic dentist is included in the team, and their work really does change the outward appearance of the person undergoing the makeover. Whether it’s veneers, crowns or a simple whitening routine, your cosmetic dentist has all the latest technology and equipment ready to turn those imperfect teeth to perfect teeth. In the process, you’ll be encouraged to give the world your biggest and brightest smile – after all, you’ll have the teeth to show off.

The procedure is quite straightforward. An image is taken of your tooth and computer software is used to create a digital copy of the required restoration. This is then fed into a special piece of equipment that creates a restoration that perfectly matches the missing part of the tooth. This technology can be used to create ceramic dental crowns, veneers, inlays, and onlays, and the good news for you is that it can be done quickly and accurately.

By having the option to produce these restorations while you wait, you only require one visit to your dentist. More importantly, you only have to experience the treatment once. In the past, your dentist would prepare the tooth, take a cast, which was then sent of to a technician, then place a temporary restoration in place. When you returned, the temporary restoration had to be removed before the permanent restoration could be put in place. CEREC technology does away with that temporary restoration and the need to return – the tooth is prepared and the permanent restoration put in place almost immediately. Technology is everywhere, even in your dentist’s office.

There are no guarantees, of course, you may be unhappy with your smile because your lips are too thick (or too thin). However, if it is a dental issue, then your dentist or a cosmetic dentist will be able to help. The range of treatments available to improve one’s smile is huge. Some of these treatments include:

• tooth whitening
• dental crowns
• dental bridges
• dental veneers
• teeth cleaning
• tooth stain removal
• tooth straightening
• dental implants, and
• dentures

And that’s just scraping the surface (pun intended). Your dentist may need to remove teeth or remove decay and then fill teeth the holes left. There are also services such as inlays, onlays, and even tooth (or gum) sculpturing that may improve your smile.

Being unhappy with your smile is one thing, but not doing anything about it is another. If you are unhappy with your smile, then seek the services of a competent dentist. They can work wonders with teeth and gums, improving your teeth by straightening them, cleaning and polishing them, and restoring them to their natural look. Most patients enter a cosmetic dentist’s office looking rather glum – most leave with big cheery smiles, and that’s before having any treatment.