Looking for a dentist in Durban North?
Whether you’re coming in for a routine checkup or advanced dentistry, we are on standby whether you’re a regular or walk-in patient. Three of our core services people look for most often and which we’re highly experience in include:
- Being your pediatric dentist in Durban North
- Teeth whitening in Durban North
- dental crowns in Durban North
Pediatric dentistry
Pediatric dentistry as a field is known as pedodontics. It focuses on treating babies and young children. As a pediatric dentist in Durban North, our pedodontists have completed the extra training required to provide the specialist care your young child needs.
There are certain complex conditions related to children. As a pediatric dentist in Durban North, we successfully treat these conditions although any number of other issues can arise:
- oral health checks
- Providing medication to aid relaxation
- Special counseling – nutrition, thumb and finger sucking, and hygiene
- emergency dental procedures
- premature loss of a primary tooth and subsequent space management
- appliances and methods to discourage thumb sucking.
We try to keep things upbeat, welcoming and as positive for our young patients as possible. It is not the same as treating adults, as children may have an inherent fear of the chair. As a pediatric dentist in Durban North, we try to keep things as fun and relaxed as we can. We try to engage our young stars and not talk over them with the adults in the room, although consultations with parents is important.
Counselling on bad habits is important and we try to support both parents and the child in stopping this. It can lead to misaligned teeth, improper growth of teeth and even premature loss of teeth through falling out. Seeing to chipped teeth and performing fluoride treatments to clean young teeth is also very common.
Teeth whitening
A yellow or nicotine-stained smile can affect confidence. In recent years, we have seen an increase in demand for providing teeth whitening in Durban North.
The outer layer of a tooth or enamel reflects light off it. This, combined with the dentin under it, gives a tooth its colour. Genes also play a role in enamel thickness, smoothness and colour. A thin coating forms on the enamel with time. This is where stains lodge and sit. The enamel itself also has tiny pores which houses stains.
As dentists providing teeth whitening in Durban North we always advise against these habits which cause stains:
- smoking
- consuming excessive coffee, tea, red wine and dark-coloured fizzy drinks
- not brushing well and/or following up with a mouthwash.
As we know from our training and experience in carrying out teeth whitening in Durban North, it is also possible to have intrinsic stains, or stains inside the tooth. Intrinsic stains can be caused by too much fluoride exposure during the development phase of the teeth, or through antibiotics, which stain a child’s teeth if taken when the child is younger than 8, or by the mother during the last part of pregnancy. Trauma can also darken teeth. Tooth whitening is most effective on outer and not inner stains. Cavities and other issues need to be seen to before teeth are whitened, and we need to assess your tooth structure to make sure it is strong enough.
Dental crowns
We are the leading dental technicians of dental crowns in Durban North. Crowns are used to cover cover or “cap” a damaged tooth or cover an implant to enhance the appearance. They also help with shape, alignment and bite.
First we will assess whether you are a good candidate for a crown, and if not we will discuss other options with you. Our focus is always on safety and long-term comfort. When patients come in for dental crowns in Durban North we file down the tooth to enable it to fit snugly below the crown should we see that you are a good candidate. If your tooth is damaged or broken, we may fill it in so you can receive the crown. When the receiving tooth is ready, we make an impression of it and mold the crown on this. We may fit a temporary crown.
In fitting dental crowns in Durban North, when the temporary crown is removed, we’ll be ready to fasten your new crown into place with a dental adhesive. Adjusting to the feel of the crown may take time. But after a while, it will look function and feel like any other real tooth. Speak to us if you have any questions in general about crowns or after an actual procedure or before, we are always happy to provide any answers you may need.
Maintaining good oral hygiene by flossing and brushing regularly and avoiding harsh foods such as ice chips or sticky toffee is key to looking after your teeth and your new crown.
