A free soft tissue graft is a tissue graft made by taking tissue from the roof of a patient's mouth to the area where the patient's gums have receded. Soft tissue grafts help the teeth to stay in place and protects the tooth roots from damage and future decay.

Soft tissue grafts can be used to cover roots or develop gum tissue where absent due to excessive gum recession. During this procedure, your periodontist takes gum tissue from your palate or from another donor source to cover the exposed root. A soft tissue graft  can be done for the benefit of one tooth or several teeth. Soft tissue grafts even your gum line and reduce tooth sensitivity as well.

Soft tissue grafts are also used for aesthetic reasons, to make teeth that are too long appear visibly shorter teeth. 

However, only a trained specialist can determine whether a soft tissue graft is the best procedure for you. So if you have receding gums or believe that your teeth would look better if they also looked shorter, by all means schedule a consultation with your dentist today.

With so many dentists to choose from, it can be difficult to select the right one.  One of the top criteria for choosing a great dentist is ensuring that the dentist offers cutting edge services and dental solutions.  After all, why not go to a dentist that can provide the latest types of dental treatments for the best oral hygiene and smile possible?

The miracles of modern dentistry have introduced a myriad of dental options.  Cosmetic dentists feature procedures such as professional tooth whitening, bonding, porcelain veneers, bridges and dental implants.  No matter what dental difficulties you are experiencing, ranging from stained teeth to chipped teeth to misaligned teeth, a cosmetic dentist can offer a quick, painless solution.  You can actually experience a real-life smile makeover at a cosmetic dentist's office.

There are also sedation dentists who help anxious patients face dental procedures through the use of sedatives, nitrous oxide and general anesthesia, depending on the dental working being done.  Instead of facing dental procedures with fear, patients can handle their necessary work calmly and with confidence at a sedation dentist's office.

Why not select a dentist who knows about the latest dental procedures and cutting edge technology so you always leave their office smiling?

If your kids are wearing braces, congratulations – you have already done something terrific for their teeth.  However, while your children wear braces you need to ensure they are taking proper care of their teeth so they look great when the braces are removed.

Good oral hygiene is essential with braces because food particles and plaque can get caught in the small spaces in between braces and wires, causing tooth decay and stains on the tooth enamel.  Food may also react to bacteria in your child's mouth and the metal braces causing a bleaching effect that create small light spots.  Because of all this, it is necessary to have clean teeth and braces at all times.

Children should brush after every  meal.  You may want to give your child a small portable toothbrush to use at school and after school activities to keep their teeth and braces as clean as possible.  A floss threader or special orthodontic floss can be used daily to clean between the braces and under wiring.  When your child does not have a toothbrush, advise them to vigorously rinse their mouth out with water after eating to get rid of food particles.

You should also advise kids with braces to avoid soda and sugary snacks that promote tooth decay.  Sticky foods such as chewing gum, dried fruits, caramel and taffy are completely off limits because they can get stuck on braces and become difficult to remove.  Healthy snacks that are hard to chew, like apples and carrots, should be cut up before eating to avoid damaging wires.

With a bit of extra care and attention, your kids' teeth will look much better after braces with no telltale signs of decay.

Are you suffering with a smile that is less than perfect?  Are you short on time and wish that you could improve the appearance of your teeth right away?  A cosmetic dentist can rejuvente your smile in just one visit.

Cosmetic dentists specialize in improving the appearance of your teeth as quickly and painlessly as possible while achieving natural results.  Whether you have stained, discolored, chipped, cracked or misaligned teeth, a cosmetic dentist can help you to find a solution to make your smile look better.

If your teeth are dingy or stained, professional tooth whitening can be done in only one visit to the cosmetic dentist's office.  A hydrogen peroxide based gel is applied to your teeth and often heat is applied to accelerate the effects of the gel.  Within an hour or two, you will enjoy teeth that are up to five or ten shades whiter with professional tooth whitening.

For teeth that are cracked, chipped or highly discolored, dental bonding is a solution your cosmetic dentist may suggest.  In just one office visit, the cosmetic dentist use dental bonding to improve your teeth.  A tooth colored, dental material is sculpted around your tooth by the cosmetic dentist and then hardened with heat to completely transform the appearance of your tooth in minutes.

If you want to improve the appearance of your teeth in only one visit to the cosmetic dentist, there are options that can give you a smile to be proud of.

Do your kids play sports?  Most kids today play at least one sport to boost their physical skills and increase their overall level of fitness.  Sports are beneficial and fun for kids, but can also be dangerous to a child's teeth.  If your kids play physical sports, protective sports gear is essential to avoid injury.  Protecting your kids teeth while they play their favorite sport can help to prevent a serious injury to their mouth.

Depending on the sport your child plays, there is a myriad of injuries than can happen to your child's teeth while they are enjoying their game.  Teeth can be broken, chipped or knocked out, tongues can be cut or bitten and jaw collisions even occur.  A simple mouth guard literally prevents thousand of oral injuries each year. 

Some parents are under the misconception that only football and hockey players need mouth guards.  The fact of the matter is that kids who play other sports, such as baseball, soccer and basketball, are just as likely to sustain an injury to their teeth or mouth.  Sports such as cycling, field hockey, martial arts, boxing, lacrosse, softball, rugby and skateboarding can also cause your child to injure their teeth and a mouth guard is a great way to protect their lifetime oral assets.

No matter what type of physical sport your kid plays, consider consulting with your family dentist to have a custom tooth guard fitted to prevent serious injury to your child's teeth and mouth in the future.

When your tooth become infected or if there is damage to the pulp, your dentist may recommend a root canal.  Often infection in your tooth comes from an untreated cavity, but it can also be a result of trauma.  Your tooth frequently becomes painful and your gums inflamed.

There are pros and cons to having a root canal procedure performed when you have an infection.  The advantage of having a root canal is that there is little pain during the procedure, which eliminates the ongoing pain caused by the infection.  A root canal is not a cosmetic procedure but done for your overall healthy to eliminate an infection.  If the infection is not treated, it will worsen.  Root canal procedures are effective over 92 percent of the time and the greatest pro is that your tooth will not need to be extracted in the future.

A disadvantage to having a root canal done occur when infected tissue is pushed to the ends of the root and your gum gets infected. This occurs infrequently due to the irregular shape of the canals in your teeth and may require you have a second root canal procedure performed to clear up the infection.

After a root canal, a crown and post will be placed to strengthen the tooth, which will be weakened from the root canal.  The crown and post are done at an additional cost.

A root canal is an necessary dental procedure if you are experiencing pain because you need to eliminate the infection inside your tooth.

With just one visit to your cosmetic dentist, you can have a sparkling smile to be proud of.  Modern dental procedures are quick, painless and the results are absolutely incredible.  If you have been dreaming of a more attractive smile, you can look better after a single trip to the cosmetic dentist's office.

Your cosmetic dentist can help to improve a myriad of oral imperfections, regardless of whether your teeth are stained, discolored, chipped, cracked or misaligned. No matter what type of smile you want, your cosmetic dentist will make sure you get it.

For example, if you want to have whiter, brighter teeth you may opt for professional tooth whitening.  In a mere couple of hours, you can have teeth that are five to ten shades whiter.  The cosmetic dentist will apply a hydrogen peroxide based gel to your teeth and often accelerate the whitening process with heat.  With one visit to the dental office, you will enjoy a dazzling smile!

If you teeth are chipped or cracked, a cosmetic dentist can transform their appearance with dental bonding.  A tooth colored material is sculpted around your teeth and then hardened with heat to improve them in moments.

Finally, porcelain veneers can be used to makeover serious smile problems, including cracked and misaligned teeth.  In only one or two dental office visits, tooth colored shells are bonded to the fronts of your teeth to create a whole new smile.

If you want a sparkling new smile, it is just a visit to the cosmetic dentist away.

Is chewing gum good or bad for your teeth?  This is a really good question, especially with all the controversial information out there about chewing gum and the health of your teeth.

The answer to the question is that it depends on what type of gum you are chewing.  Chewing gum with sugar is not good for your teeth because it causes excessive sugar to build up in your mouth and get ground in between your teeth.  The extra sugar in your mouth is a home for the bacteria that causes tooth decay and infection.

However, chewing sugarless gum is actually good for your teeth.  The American Dental Association approves of chewing sugarless gum for twenty minutes after a meal when you are unable to brush your teeth.  Chewing the sugar free gum will actually make your mouth produce additional saliva that will help rinse the acid off your teeth after eating. 

If you enjoy chewing gum, it's great to know that you don't have to stop.  All you need to do is get rid of the sugary gum and replace it with sugarless gum to do your teeth a favor.  It's also convenient to grab sugarless gum when you won't be able to brush your teeth after a meal.  Who ever thought that chewing gum could be good for your teeth?

The most recent research revealed that everyone can benefit from fluoride and fluoride treatments because they helps to prevent tooth decay for people of all ages.  Getting a professional fluoride treatment at your dentist's office helps to ensure your teeth are protected against possible tooth decay.

Certain physical and oral conditions may make you more susceptible to tooth decay including:

• dry mouth from a health condition or taking medication which minimize saliva in your mouth causing acids to build up because they are not being neutralized by saliva;
• receding gums give room for bacteria to grow and teeth decay more quickly; and
• braces can trap bacteria that leads to cavities.

A fluoride treatment at the dentist's office is a pleasant, painless experience.  The dentist or hygienist will dry  your mouth and apply a foam, paint or varnish with fluoride and sometimes a mouth guard is used that you will wear for a few minutes.  After the professional fluoride treatment you cannot eat or smoke for at least thirty minutes.  Your mouth will feel clean and refreshed after a fluoride treatment.

To prevent future tooth decay and have the best oral hygiene possible, visit your dentist for a professional fluoride treatment today.

Remember all those old photos from 100 years ago? Did you ever wonder why so many of the people in them never smiled? It was because their teeth looked awful, and back then there were no aesthetic dentists to help!

So don't feel badly if your teeth have become a little dull and yellow over the years—everyone's teeth become yellower and less attractive with age—just thank your lucky stars aesthetic dentistry is here today!

Actually, our forebears had bigger problems than yellow teeth.  Many of them had lost a number of teeth due to a poorly understood need for dental hygiene and not a dentist in sight who could fill cavities, perform dental implant surgery, apply porcelain veneers, bond gaps between teeth, invisibly realign crooked teeth or repair cracked teeth.

You're a lot luckier. You have an aesthetic dentist on your side.