The Purpose of Night Guards

A night guard is a piece of hard plastic made from impressions of your teeth that is placed on the upper and lower teeth while you sleep. Reasons for needing one include bruxism, the act of grinding your teeth while you sleep. The purpose of the night guard is to protect your teeth and jaws. Here at Top Choice Dental we offer custom-made night guards to our patients to fit your bite evenly providing a more effective form of treatment.

If you already grind your teeth, you will grind them much harder in sleep than while you are awake. When this action occurs, it can cause chipping, fractures, excessive wear and loosening of the teeth. Overall, the night guard protects your teeth from grinding and clenching. When your lips come together, your teeth will be apart which initiates a muscle relaxation process. When muscles are relaxed, your teeth will rest on bite pads which are made of a hybrid resilient material that slips comfortably between your teeth.

If you grind your teeth or find yourself waking up with jaw pain, give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To learn more about the services we provide at our practice, visit www.hoptowndental.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental in Hopkinsville, KY, call 270-886-8585. 

What is Oral Cancer?

Oral cancer is a malignant growth that affects any part of the oral cavity, including the lips, upper or lower jaw, tongue, gums, cheeks, and throat. Anyone can get oral cancer, but the risk is higher if you are male, over age 40, use tobacco or alcohol or have a history of head or neck cancer. Understanding the causative factors of cancer will contribute to the prevention of the disease. Your health is important to us and you should schedule regular dental checkups with Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental to detect oral cancer early when it is the easiest to treat.

The most common symptom of oral cancer is a sore in the mouth that bleeds easily and does not heal. Another common sign of oral cancer is developing pain in the mouth that does not go away. Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental can examine the mouth and throat as part of a routine checkup if you are concerned about developing oral cancer. During regular checkups, abnormal tissue changes and oral cancer can be detected at its earliest stage when there is a greater chance for a cure.

If you have questions about oral cancer, please give us a call. To learn more about the services we provide at our practice, visit www.hoptowndental.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental in Hopkinsville, KY, call 270-886-8585. 

ARESTIN for Gum Disease

Gum disease is the #1 cause of adult tooth loss in the United States. If you don’t practice proper oral hygiene on a daily basis, you can develop gingivitis (the earliest stage of gum disease), which if left untreated can lead to periodontitis (the final stage of gum disease). Gingivitis is reversible, however, periodontitis is not. If your gum disease moves past the stage of gingivitis, Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental may need to apply ARESTIN to the gums, an antibiotic that is used in adjunct to scaling and root planing. 

Scaling and root planing is an effective gum disease treatment. In this procedure, our doctors use tools to clean plaque and tartar from your teeth and roots below the gum line. During the procedure, our doctors utilize ARESTIN, an antibiotic containing microspheres that are smaller than grains of sand. ARESTIN is placed directly to your gums and has the power to kill bacteria so your gums can heal better than with scaling and root planing alone. In one single visit, our doctors can add ARESTIN to the pocket between your gum and tooth. It is a painless procedure, with effective results.

If you have questions about ARESTIN, please give us a call. To learn more about the services we provide at our practice, visit www.hoptowndental.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental in Hopkinsville, KY, call 270-886-8585. 

How to Keep Your Teeth White and Bright!

A white smile is easy to obtain when you know the right tricks. In addition to our whitening services here at Top Choice Dental in Hopkinsville, KY, we want our patients to know how to keep bright, white, and shiny teeth!

A white smile is a great confidence booster. While we have professional whitening services here in our Hopkinsville, KY office, it is good to know some tips for avoiding staining.

Try to stay away from darker foods like coffee, blueberries, and tomato sauce. It is not always easy to stay away from these, especially if they are favorites so rinse your mouth after consuming them when you do. Rinsing is also important when eating foods high in acidic content, like citric fruits and energy drinks. Also be sure to have a regular oral hygiene routine of brushing and flossing.

 Baking soda is a popular home treatment method for teeth whitening, but be informed. Baking soda is very abrasive, which is bad for teeth. It wears away enamel, which eventually will turn your teeth dark; the opposite of what you want. In addition, worn away enamel makes teeth prone to cavities. Instead, visit us for our custom take-home whitening trays.

Follow these tips and keep those pearly whites white! For information about our professional whitening, schedule an appointment with Top Choice Dental of Hopkinsville, KY by calling (270) 886-8585. More information can also be found on our website, www.hoptowndental.com. 

Make Sure You Brush for Long Enough

In order to brush all the areas of your mouth adequately, you should be brushing for about two minutes. While the sometimes mundane task of brushing your teeth may cause you to quickly swipe your teeth and go, it is important to spend enough time taking care of your teeth and gums. Top Choice Dental of Hopkinsville, KY wants to remind patients to brush effectively! Take some tips for making sure you are spending a full two minutes brushing!

Tunes

Play some music while you are brushing your teeth! It may even help you wake up in the morning! Most music players also have a timer, so just rock out until you hit two minutes!

Cell Phones

Phones are timers and watches for many people. Set a two-minute timer on your phone! If your phone has music on it, that’s bonus!

Break it Up

Split your mouth into four sections and spend thirty seconds on each section. Just don’t forget your tongue, inner cheeks, and the roof of your mouth!

Electric Toothbrushes

Many electric toothbrushes have automatic timers on them. They pause in vibration a couple of times when you have hit two minutes!

Keep a good at-home oral care routine and have great dental checkups! To schedule an appointment with Top Choice Dental of Hopkinsville, KY, call us at (270) 886-8585 or visit our website, www.hoptowndental.com. 

Dental Cleaning (Prophylaxis) Explained

 

No matter how much you diligently brush or floss your teeth at home, harmful bacteria grow in your mouth that can only be removed by a dental professional. These bacteria can cause gum disease, and significantly affect your overall health. Here at Top Choice Dental, our hygienists will use professional tools to remove plaque, tartar and bacteria build-up that you are unable to efficiently remove yourself. 

According to the Academy of General Dentistry it is recommended that a dentist or hygienist perform a dental cleaning every six months. The professional dental cleaning reinforces the home-care oral health regimen of brushing and flossing and gives Dr. Greg Fort an opportunity to locate areas in the mouth that may need special attention. During a teeth cleaning, our hygienists will thoroughly clean the area above and below the gum line with scaling tools to rid them of plaque and tartar. Once the surfaces are smooth, polishing is done using a slow speed hand piece with a soft rubber cup that spins on the end. Last but not least, the dentist flosses every crevice between your teeth. 

If you need your teeth cleaned don’t wait any longer, call us today so we can help you maintain a healthy smile! To learn more about the services we provide at our practice, visit www.hoptowndental.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental in Hopkinsville, KY, call 270-886-8585. 

No matter how much you diligently brush or floss your teeth at home, harmful bacteria grow in your mouth that can only be removed by a dental professional. These bacteria can cause gum disease and significantly affect your overall health. Here at Top Choice Dental, our hygienists will use professional tools to remove plaque, tartar and bacteria build-up that you are unable to efficiently remove yourself.

According to the Academy of General Dentistry, it is recommended that a dentist or hygienist perform a dental cleaning every six months. The professional dental cleaning reinforces the home-care oral health regimen of brushing and flossing and gives Dr. Greg Fort an opportunity to locate areas in the mouth that may need special attention. During a teeth cleaning, our hygienists will thoroughly clean the area above and below the gum line with scaling tools to rid them of plaque and tartar. Once the surfaces are smooth, polishing is done using a slow speed handpiece with a soft rubber cup that spins on the end. Last but not least, the dentist flosses every crevice between your teeth.

If you need your teeth cleaned don’t wait any longer, call us today so we can help you maintain a healthy smile! To learn more about the services we provide at our practice, visit www.hoptowndental.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental in Hopkinsville, KY, call 270-886-8585. 

 

Are You Suffering From Sensitive Teeth?

Is a sip of hot coffee or the taste of biting into a cold apple sometimes a painful experience for you? If so, you may have sensitive teeth. Tooth sensitivity is one of the most common complaints among dental patients. In fact, at least, 40 million adults suffer at some time from sensitive teeth. Fortunately, Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental offers a variety of treatments to provide you with relief so that you don’t have to be one of them.

Tooth sensitivity is caused by the movement of fluid within tiny tubes located in the dentin (the layer of tissue found beneath the hard enamel that contains the inner pulp), which results in nerve irritation. When the hard enamel is worn down or gums have receded, causing the tiny tube surfaces to be exposed, pain can be caused by eating or drinking foods or hot or cold beverages, or exposing your teeth to cold air. Luckily for our patients, tooth sensitivity can be reduced by using desensitizing toothpaste or having Dr. Greg Fort apply sealants and/or fluoride treatment.

If you are experiencing tooth sensitivity, please give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To learn more about the services we provide at our practice, visit www.hoptowndental.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Greg Fort at Top Choice Dental in Hopkinsville, KY, call 270-886-8585.