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What Is An Impacted Tooth?

April 4th, 2018

FOR MOST PEOPLE, baby teeth become loose and adult teeth erupt in their place. For many, those adult teeth don’t come in entirely straight, so orthodontic treatment is necessary to shift them into the ideal position. For some, one or more of these teeth never emerge on their own, even though they developed in the jaw bone. These are impacted teeth.

Why Does Tooth Impaction Happen?

Tooth impaction is often the result of a crowding problem. If the new tooth doesn’t have room to come in, it may remain stuck beneath the gums. A full impaction is when the tooth fails to erupt at all, whereas a partial impaction is when the tooth breaches the gumline but doesn’t grow in completely.

Teeth Lost In The Gums

The most common teeth to become impacted are wisdom teeth. They might be impacted because there isn’t room for them in the jaw, they may be crooked, or they could even be completely sideways, threatening the roots of second molars. Another tooth commonly impacted is the upper maxillary canine, and lower mandibular canines and upper and lower premolars can be impacted as well.

Research shows that if there’s a history of impacted upper canines in your family, you are more likely to have them as well. Most often, only one canine will be impacted, but sometimes both are. Why the upper canines? Normally, they come in after the incisors and the premolars. When those don’t leave enough room between them, the canines have nowhere to go.

Symptoms And Complications Of Impacted Teeth

Some people with an impacted tooth show no symptoms except that the tooth doesn’t erupt. If it’s a canine, the baby tooth may not even loosen on its own! But even without symptoms, canine teeth are critical to a great smile because they provide essential structure and support. They also take on much of the chewing pressure thanks to their longer roots, which protects the surrounding teeth.

Impacted teeth often cause complications and symptoms besides a lopsided smile. Impacted teeth can push into neighboring teeth beneath the gums and cause cavities, infections, gum disease, or nerve damage. Symptoms might include bad breath, pain, tenderness around the jawline, a prolonged headache or jaw ache, swollen gums, swollen lymph nodes, bad taste in mouth, and visible gaps.

Treatment: A Place For Every Tooth

Impaction of a tooth usually can’t be prevented, but the tooth can be removed (in the case of wisdom teeth) or moved into its proper position (in the case of canines) with oral surgery and orthodontic treatment. An impacted tooth is usually discovered through dental x-rays, and then the orthodontist can determine the best course of action to take.

Help Us Help You

If you think you may have an impacted tooth, visit us at Gorczyca Orthodontics in Antioch, California for a free orthodontic exam. We’re always here to help and to treat your impacted tooth.

Your smile is our inspiration!

Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.
The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

Some Dental Implant Basics

September 29th, 2017

IF YOU HAVE A MISSING TOOTH there are typically three options. You could get a bridge, which protects the surrounding teeth and helps keep them from moving. You can get a partial denture, which is a removable placeholder for the missing tooth. Or you can get an implant. A dental implant is a safe, permanent, aesthetically pleasing solution for a missing tooth.

You may be tempted to think that there’s a viable option #4 called “ignore it.” But that would be a mistake. Missing teeth can cause serious problems in your mouth including shifting teeth, additional tooth loss, deteriorating gums, and weakened bone structure.

How Implants Work

  • Step 1: The implant process begins with a small rod (or “post”) that is anchored in your jaw. This post fuses to existing bone and imitates the function of dental roots.
  • Step 2: Typically there’s a 3–6 month healing time to ensure complete and proper post fusion. During this time, a temporary crown protects your mouth, gums, and adjacent teeth.
  • Step 3: After the area has fully healed, a custom crown is placed on the post.

What Should You Know Regarding Implants And Orthodontic Treatment?

At Gorczyca Orthodontics, we prepare patients for dental implants. Should you be considering an implant, consider orthodontic treatment first as dental implants, once placed, are not moveable.

We will work closely with your general dentist and your oral surgeon to give you the best implant result possible.

What Kind Of Results Will You Get?

At Gorczyca Orthodontics, we have helped hundreds of patients get dental implants. We have numerous Before and After photos of successful cases which we can share with you at your initial examination.

We can also provide you with a diagnostic wax-up of your own teeth, a three dimensional model of your virtual treatment result that you can hold in your own hands or even take home so that you can see what your final result is expected to look like.

We Work Closely With A Team...

Dr. Gorczyca works with a team of her dental colleagues to make dental implants, fast, safe, and effective for you. When considering dental implants, it is important to ask “Is your surgeon a surgeon?” Dr. Gorczyca works with the most experienced oral surgeons who have placed thousands of dental implants.

For a complimentary implant consultation please call Gorczyca Orthodontics at (925) 757-9000 or visit us at www.clubbraces.com

Our team will assist you every step of the way through your dental implant procedure to help you achieve the world class smile that you deserve.

Uneven Jaws can be Corrected

September 6th, 2017

SOMETIMES JAW GROWTH is uneven. It can produce jaws of different sizes right and left. One side may be too far forward or too far back. Uneven jaw growth may cause the face to look off-center or crooked.

Uneven Jaws Cause Problems For Your Smile

With uneven jaws, teeth do not fit together properly. A too-small, too-large, or crooked jaw with poor tooth position can make chewing, smiling, speaking, breathing, and even sleeping more difficult. An improper bite caused by jaw asymmetry may also lead to jaw pain or excessive tooth wear.

We Can Help Give You A Straight Smile

Uneven jaws can be fixed. Your orthodontist can help. Working together with a maxillofacial oral surgeon, your orthodontist will align your dental arches and teeth with braces or Invisalign to prepare you for orthognathic jaw surgery. Your uneven jaws will be repositioned and your smile, teeth, and bite form and function will be improved forever.

Jaw Alignment Restores Facial Symmetry

Once jaws are brought into alignment, dental midlines will match facial midlines and facial balance will be restored. Your bite and face will be more symmetrical and you will look and feel great.

Jaw corrections are all done within the mouth. Incisions, screws or plates (fixation devices) won't be seen or felt with jaw surgery. The short side of the jaw will be lengthened and the long side of the jaw will be shortened. The chin will also be centered (genioplasty). Your natural look will make it difficult for anyone to know that you had jaw surgery done at all.

If you have uneven jaws, we're here to help. Call us at Gorczyca Orthodontics, 5201 Deer Valley Road in Antioch, California (925) 757-9000. Visit us at www.clubbraces.com.

Uneven jaws can be corrected. Enjoy your results for the rest of your life, and keep smiling!

Your smile is our inspiration.

Top image by Flickr user Yann Caradec used under Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 4.0 license. Image cropped and modified from original.
The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

Missing Teeth are Cute (on Little Kids)

October 18th, 2016

THERE’S NO NEED to live with missing teeth. Your missing teeth can be replaced with permanent dental implants.

Orthodontic Treatment May Be Needed Before Implants

Replacement of your missing teeth may require orthodontic treatment with braces or Invisalign prior to implant placement. Orthodontic treatment can open tooth spaces for ideal implant placement, an excellent bite, and a beautiful smile.

Your implant sites may need ridge augmentation (bone grafting) to increase bone in areas where teeth have been missing for a long time. Ridge augmentation will make your implants more stable and your teeth and gums more aesthetic.

If You Have Questions, Give Us A Call!

If you have questions about how to get started replacing your missing teeth, call us at Gorczyca Orthodontics in Antioch, CA 925-757-9000. We will assemble your tooth replacement team of a general dentist, oral surgeon, and orthodontist. We will work together to treatment plan your case and give you the smile of your dreams.

There's no need to live with missing teeth. Give yourself the gift of a cute smile at any age.

When Are Orthodontic Extractions Necessary?

November 5th, 2015

SOMETIMES FOR THE MOST gorgeous and healthy smile possible, orthodontic tooth extractions are necessary.

5 Situations When Tooth Extraction is Best

Here are a few situations when it would be best to extract teeth with your orthodontic treatment:

  1. Teeth are severely crowded with 10mm and the bone and periodontal soft tissue cannot accommodate expansion.
  2. There is a severe open bite which can be reduced and corrected by tooth extraction.
  3. The lips are severely protrusive or open at rest.
  4. The chin has strain at rest when the lips close, giving it a "golf ball" appearance.
  5. There is a severe overjet with upper teeth extremely protrusive.

Extractions are less common in young patients who are still growing and are able to have arch expansion and growth modification.

Tooth Extraction Can Be A Simple Process

Tooth extraction is usually done by an oral surgeon. Depending on their training and experience, some general dentists may also extract permanent teeth.

The extraction of bicuspids and other teeth (not including wisdom teeth) is usually simple. It is usually done quickly. With anesthesia, there is usually no discomfort. Once home, be sure to eat soft food and avoid using a straw immediately following the procedure. There is no need to miss school following the procedure.

At Gorczyca Orthodontics, we try to minimize tooth extraction as much as possible. To find out if tooth extraction is absolutely necessary for you, visit us at www.clubbraces.com or call us at (925) 757-9000. To find an orthodontist in your area, visit the America Association of Orthodontists at www.mylifemysmile.org. To find an oral surgeon in your area visit the American Association of Oral Surgeons at www.aaos.org.

Thank you for trusting us with your orthodontic care. Here's to your beautiful smile.

Top image by Flickr user Andres Rodriguez used under Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 4.0 license. Image cropped and modified from original.
More Topics
diplomate american board of orthodontics Edward H. Angle Society of Orthodontists advanced education in orthdontics
member american association of orthodontists seattle study club american dental association california dental association
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