914-337-6536
20 Studio Arcade Bronxville, NY 10708
One problem with trying to answer the question as to who benefits from Invisalign is that the simple answer is “almost everyone.” The see-through, almost invisible aligners for straightening teeth are specifically molded to fit each individual’s mouth. Unlike conventional braces, they can be removed when eating and when cleaning the teeth. Because they use less force in straightening teeth than metal braces, the risk of harm to teeth is lessened.
Benefits to adults
Traditional braces are associated with children and teenagers. Many adults want to have their teeth straightened but cannot decide which is worse: having crooked teeth or wearing metal braces. They also worry about having to change their diet by not being able to eat the foods they normally enjoy.
If you are an adult considering braces, our team at Bronxville Dental Care will tell you Invisalign aligners will give you the best of all worlds. Your teeth will be straightened with virtually invisible braces. You can remove your aligners when you eat so you can enjoy any food you normally would consume. You do not have to worry about embarrassing yourself by getting food stuck in your braces. You simply clean your teeth normally after eating and replace your aligners. If there is a special occasion during which you do not want to have any braces at all, you can remove the aligners for a few hours without causing any damage.
Benefits to teenagers
Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis and our team know that teenagers are often involved in contact sports or gymnastics. Others find that having metal in their mouth interferes with their ability to play a musical instrument. Traditional metal braces contain wires and brackets that can cause damage to the mouth and gums; this is not a risk with Invisalign aligners.
For sports that require players to wear mouthguards, the expense of specially constructed mouthguards to fit over braces is avoided. The aligners can be removed during sports activity, and a normal mouthguard is worn. Teenagers who play musical instruments simply remove the aligners when practicing or playing in the band or orchestra.
Teenagers often feel they are too busy to spend time and trouble flossing teeth between the wires and brackets of traditional braces. Since the Invisalign aligners are removable, brushing and flossing are simpler and more likely to be performed.
For more information about Invisalign or Invisalign Teen, or to schedule an initial consultation with Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis, please give us a call at our convenient Bronxville office!
It’s the holiday season! With so much to do and so much going on, you want to be at your best. We have some ideas to help make your season bright with a few easy tips for a healthy smile.
There’s a lot going on during the holidays. Visiting friends. Traveling to see family. Parties and get togethers. With all the enjoyable festivities on your holiday schedule, you might be tempted to overlook brushing or flossing. But, please don’t!
Many of our favorite holiday traditions and activities are centered around sharing good company, good cheer—and good food.
Indulging in more treats throughout the day, especially sugars and simple carbs, provides more fuel for the bacteria in plaque. These bacteria produce acids that weaken tooth enamel—the first stage of tooth decay. Plaque buildup also irritates the gums, causing swelling, redness, pain, bleeding, and chronic bad breath.
How to avoid these not-so-jolly consequences? Make time in your holiday schedule for dental care! Brushing twice a day for two minutes and flossing once each day removes plaque buildup and helps prevent cavities and gum disease.
We’re no Scrooges—enjoying holiday treats is one of the ways we celebrate. But since we’re trying to prevent a plaque buffet of sugar and simple carbs, it’s a good idea to add some healthier foods to the mix.
Whether it’s platters of snacks around the game table or a stylish hors d’oeuvre array, don’t forget to add nutritional, dental-friendly items to your plate. Options such as fresh fruits and vegetables, cheeses, nuts, and whole grain breads and crackers are great partners for more indulgent selections because they’re lower in added sugars and provide vitamins and minerals to strengthen teeth and gums.
And from the candy bar? Hard candies and candy canes make our naughty list because they take a long time to dissolve while bathing your teeth in sugar. So do caramels, toffees, and gumdrops, which stick between teeth and gums. Soft chocolates? A much nicer choice, because they are more easily rinsed away by saliva or a drink of water. Which leads us to . . .
The holidays offer some of our favorite seasonal beverages. But spiced lattes, mochas, and hot chocolate can be full of sugar.
The answer? Enjoy in moderation, and enjoy with a glass of water. Water washes away sugars, neutralizes acids, helps increase saliva flow for tooth and gum health, hydrates, and, when it’s fluoridated, protects and repairs your enamel. That’s a lot of gifts in one convenient package!
If you’re taking to the slopes, or the hills, or the rink for a little holiday exercise, don’t forget to protect your teeth and mouth. It’s not just sports like football and hockey that cause dental injuries—it’s any sport where you can fall or make contact with someone or something.
If you don’t have a mouthguard, they’re available at sporting goods stores in stock sizes or models that can be molded to your teeth. A custom mouthguard from our Bronxville office is more comfortable, fits better, and protects you better. This is a perfect gift to give yourself so you can take advantage of all those cold weather sports with confidence.
We all look forward to holiday surprises—but not when they take the form of cavities, gum disease, or dental injuries! In the flurry of holiday activities, keep up with your regular dental care, and you’ll be looking forward to a new year filled with happy and healthy smiles.
Okay, perhaps “everything” is a bit of an exaggeration—but we do have the answers to some essential questions if you’re thinking about replacing a missing tooth with an implant.
The construction of dental implants is simple and elegant. Most often, a titanium cylinder or screw is implanted into the jawbone. After several months, the implant becomes fused with the bone, a process called “osseointegration.” An abutment can then be secured inside the implant, extending above the gum line, and a crown is securely attached to this abutment. The result? A tooth that looks and functions just like a natural tooth.
Unlike dentures and partial bridges, which may need to be replaced every five to seven years, an implant can last a lifetime. The material usually recommended for implants is titanium, a metal that integrates well with human bone and is resistant to corrosion, although non-metallic alternatives are also available. Over a period of months, the implant fuses into the bone. The result is a base that is as strong and stable as your natural root.
Because the stability and longevity of an implant depend on its fusion with the bone surrounding it, your jawbone must have healthy density and the necessary depth and width to support an implant. When we lose a tooth, the bone underneath begins eroding as well. The longer you wait to replace a tooth, the more the jawbone beneath it shrinks. Advanced gum disease can also lead to bone loss.
Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis can often restore jawbone strength and density with a procedure known as bone grafting. This is a type of surgery which uses your own bone, a synthetic grafting material, or a processed bone grafting material to repair and replace damaged bone. After three to four months of healing, the jawbone is generally strong and dense enough to accept an implant.
The procedure takes place under local anesthesia. Sedation dentistry is also an option if you feel it would make your experience more comfortable. Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis will make a careful incision in the gum tissue. A drill will be used to create a small opening for the implant within your bone, and the implant will be gently positioned. A healing cap will be placed over the implant which will extend through the gum tissue, or the site will be closed and a healing cap applied in a second procedure after the bone heals. The entire process takes about an hour for a single implant, and you will be given careful and detailed instructions for aftercare.
Once the implant has fused with the jawbone, which takes several months, you are ready for restorative work. The dentist you choose to do the restoration will oversee the fabrication of a crown designed to match your natural teeth and to fit perfectly in the space left by your missing tooth. An abutment piece will be fitted into the implant, and the crown will be attached to the abutment. The result will be a stable, anchored tooth that functions and feels like a natural tooth.
Oral surgeons like Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis are specialists. They have a minimum of four years of surgical education and training in a hospital-based residency program. They train with medical residents in fields of study such as general surgery, anesthesiology, internal medicine, plastic surgery, and otolaryngology (the study of the ear, nose, and throat).
Because oral and maxillofacial education and training are focused on the bone, muscles, skin, and nerves of the face, mouth, and jaw, an oral surgeon is the best choice for your implant surgery and, in fact, any kind of oral surgery.
We gave it a try, but we probably haven’t answered “everything” you’d like to learn before deciding on a dental implant. But there is someone who has the knowledge and experience to assess whether you are a suitable candidate for an implant procedure and to perform your implant surgery safely, comfortably, and successfully: Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis. Make an appointment at our Bronxville office today with someone who really does know everything you need to know about dental implants!
One of the most common clues that you might have anemia is found in your smile. If you’ve noticed that your gums are suddenly paler than they used to be, it could be a sign that you’re anemic. What does this mean for your general health—and your oral health?
There are several types of anemia, which have can be caused by different medical conditions and which can cause different symptoms. The most common form of anemia, and one of the most easily treated, is iron-deficiency anemia.
Iron is essential to our health. Why? It’s all about the red blood cells. First, some biology.
Every cell in your body needs energy to live and to function. Cells get this energy from the foods we eat, which are broken down into a simple sugar called glucose. Glucose molecules are transported by our blood cells to reach all parts of the body. But that’s only the first step.
Energy is released into the cells when the chemical bonds holding glucose molecules together are broken. And this requires oxygen. Once inside our cells, glucose and oxygen react, breaking the chemical bonds of the glucose molecules, reconfiguring their atoms to create carbon dioxide and water byproducts—and releasing energy into a form your cells can use.
So, how do we move this oxygen from our lungs to our cells to start the process? That would be our red blood cells again. But this process can’t happen without adequate iron. More biology!
Red blood cells contain a protein called hemoglobin, and hemoglobin contains iron. In fact, well over half of the iron in our body is found in our red bloods cells. And here’s the key to iron’s importance: iron attracts oxygen molecules.
Hemoglobin picks up oxygen in our lungs and delivers it throughout the body, where it becomes glucose’s essential partner in fueling our cells. Without enough iron, your body won’t be able to create the red blood cells it needs so that all of your cells, tissues, and organs can get the oxygen they need to function efficiently.
When might you suspect that you’re anemic? Your gums, the lining of the mouth, the inside of your lower eyelids, and your skin can take on a paler hue—the classic sign of anemia. But other symptoms which you might not necessarily associate with anemia are also common, including:
And because anemia affects the whole body, your oral health isn’t immune. It’s not just a matter of pale gums. Iron deficiencies can cause:
Iron-deficiency anemia can have several causes, among them insufficient iron in the diet, medical conditions which cause bleeding (such as ulcers), heavy menstruation, pregnancy, or growth spurts in children and teenagers. Treatment will depend on the cause of your anemia. It might be as simple as a change in diet or an iron supplement, or it might require further treatment options. Do consult with Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis before taking iron supplements, as too much iron causes iron toxicity, which can be very dangerous.
If Dr. Jenny A. Kanganis and our team suggest that you might be anemic, or if you notice changes you think might be caused by anemia, see your physician for a simple blood test. Besides iron-deficiency anemia, there are other forms of anemia and other diseases which can mimic these symptoms, so it’s important to get a doctor’s diagnosis. If you have been diagnosed with anemia, let our Bronxville dental team know.
One last “if”: If you do have iron-deficiency anemia, don’t delay treatment. The sooner your red bloods cells are back at their peak, the sooner you—and your gums—will be back in the pink!