Vertical Dimension Loss

As providers of dentures, vertical dimension loss is one of the most serious dental problems the doctors and Bishop & Bishop Dental in Silver Spring confront. Also known as bite collapse, vertical dimension loss refers to the shortening of a patient’s face when they are without teeth.

Even if a patient still has their front teeth, the loss of the back ones can result in vertical dimension loss. Without teeth for chewing, they may compensate with their incisors, causing them to be pushed outward under bite forces they are unable to sustain. When the bite is shortened, the lower half of the face looks disproportionately small and the skin between the mouth and the nose is wrinkled. People with collapsed bites also commonly suffer from temporomandibular joint disorder, causing pain in their jaws and necks.

When constructing dentures, doctors are careful to ensure that the height of the new teeth will be aesthetically and functionally pleasing to the patient. Temporary dentures help to prepare the mouth for the height difference provided by full restorations. Other oral devices can also be used to restore vertical dimension when the natural teeth still have some crown material.

David Bishop, DDS and Dorienne Taylor-Bishop, DDS, operate Bishop & Bishop Dental at 8830 Cameron St, #504, Silver Spring, Maryland, 20910. To set up an appointment, call 301-608-9270 or visit Bishop Dental and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Sectioning Wisdom Teeth

It’s common for teenagers to need to have their wisdom teeth extracted. Sometimes this is because the large back teeth risk disrupting the other teeth’s alignment and sometimes it’s because the wisdom teeth are impacted and can’t break through. In these cases, we at Bishop & Bishop Dental in Silver Spring sometimes make the process easier on the patient be sectioning the teeth prior to removing them.

Normally, teeth are removed by using dental tools to rock them back and forth until they can be pulled out of the socket. However, impacted wisdom teeth will be too large to fit through the opening in the gum line. Even if an incision is made to the gum, the tooth might still be held in place by strong ligaments, making it unwise to yank it out. In order to break it into more manageable pieces, the doctor will cut it apart using a dental drill. This does not hurt the patient, who has already been numbed. Once the tooth is sectioned, each part may be lifted out without much force.

David Bishop, DDS and Dorienne Taylor-Bishop, DDS, operate Bishop & Bishop Dental at 8830 Cameron St, #504, Silver Spring, Maryland, 20910. To set up an appointment, call 301-608-9270 or visit Bishop Dental and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Children Suffering from Bad Breath

Generally, bad breath is caused by bacteria build-up in the mouth. But with children, there are a few special circumstances that need consideration, which is why the doctors of Bishop & Bishop Dental are ready to provide a thorough examination and diagnosis.
Children need to be taught to brush their tongues, as well as their teeth, so that bacteria can’t feed on the food particles which get caught in the soft, creviced tissue of their papillae. But there’s no easy way to clean the tonsils, which are also a trap for food debris, as well as nasal drip. Dentists can, however, recommend alcohol-free mouthwash. Children inevitably get more sinus infections than adults, providing bacteria with more fodder in the form of nasal drip, but it may be worthwhile to get them tested for allergies and, if they are very small, check to see if there is a foreign object caught in their nasal passages.
Bacteria also build-up easily when the mouth is chronically dry. Dry mouth is a common side-effect of medications, including those given for anxiety and ADHD. If medications which are contributing to bad breath can’t be swapped out, the child may need to try an artificial moisturizer.
David Bishop, DDS and Dorienne Taylor-Bishop, DDS, operate Bishop & Bishop Dental at 8830 Cameron St, #504, Silver Spring, Maryland, 20910. To set up an appointment, call 301-608-9270 or visit Bishop Dental and fill out a contact sheet.

Pain around Fillings

We provide our patients with high-quality fillings at Bishop & Bishop Dental, ensuring that decay-causing bacteria won’t be able to hide in any cracks in their teeth. But sometimes fillings can cause soreness, in which case we want to help.
It is common for the area around a filling to be sensitive immediately after it has been placed, but the patient should be able to bite down completely. If they can’t, the filling needs to be reshaped. If the soreness does not go away after a few days, it is possible that the decay went deeper than was thought, and a more extensive restoration than a filling is necessary.
Even if a filling was made well and fixed the original problem, it may not last forever. The sealant used to hold a filling in place can crack, providing bacteria with a hiding spot and allowing tooth decay to occur. The filling can also come loose. In these cases, the work would have to be redone.
David Bishop, DDS and Dorienne Taylor-Bishop, DDS, operate Bishop & Bishop Dental at 8830 Cameron St, #504, Silver Spring, Maryland, 20910. To set up an appointment, call 301-608-9270 or visit Bishop Dental and fill out a contact sheet.

Baby Bottle Tooth Decay

Bishop & Bishop Dental is known for the excellent care we provide families, and an important part of that is educating them about how to maintain their oral hygiene. Because children are at high risk of developing cavities, we want parents to be on the lookout for an especially insidious problem known among dentists as Baby Bottle Tooth Decay.

A baby’s teeth become vulnerable to decay as soon as they begin to erupt. The first to come in are usually the front teeth, the incisors, and the fronts of the front teeth tend to get coated the most by milk or formula from a baby’s bottle. Though milk and formula may not have particularly high sugar contents compared to juice, for example, it is actually the amount of time teeth are exposed to sugar which increases their risk of decay, more than the sugar content of a particular drink or food.

Usually, when babies are given milk bottles, they are not also given water bottles. This eliminates one means by which people normally wash sugary residue off their teeth. Babies are also often given their bottles for extended time periods, ensuring their teeth remain covered. Parents who wish to bottle-feed should be careful to not leave young children with bottles for too long and to transition to using cups around the child’s first birthday. They should also brush their baby’s teeth regularly and keep them supplied with water.

David Bishop, DDS and Dorienne Taylor-Bishop, DDS, operate Bishop & Bishop Dental at 8830 Cameron St, #504, Silver Spring, Maryland, 20910. To set up an appointment, call 301-608-9270 or visit BishopDental.com and fill out a contact sheet.

 

Here’s Why You Should Own a Tongue Scraper

Bad breath is a common problem for many people, given the wide variety of substances traveling through our mouths daily. While the regular brushing and flossing addresses the teeth and gums, it’s all too easy to forget about the tongue. Tongue scraping is an oral hygiene practice that removes bacteria, food debris, fungi, toxins, and dead cells from the surface of the tongue. Here at Bishop Dental, we recommend implementing this step to enhance your oral hygiene routine.

When we sleep, our digestive system remains awake, removing toxins from our body by depositing them onto the surface of our tongue. If we don’t scrape away these toxins, they get reabsorbed by the body and can lead to respiratory difficulties, digestive problems, and a compromised immune system. Dental research has concluded that a tongue scraper is more effective at removing toxins and bacteria from the tongue than a toothbrush. Although brushing and flossing will loosen and move debris around, they do not actually remove the bacteria.

Tongue scrapers are inexpensive, and can be found at most health food stores as well as online. To learn more about dental hygiene and the services we offer, visit www.bishopdental.com for more information. To schedule a consultation with Dr. David Bishop, D.D.S. or Dorienne Taylor-Bishop, D.D.S. in Silver Spring, MD, call 301-608-9270.