“Is there really a link between my mouth and heart?”

October 22nd, 2013

Yes, indeed! While brushing, flossing and regular visits to Elite Dental Care are all key to maintaining a healthy smile and mouth, Dr. Chelsea Perry and our team want you to know the state of your oral health has a significant effect on your overall health.

Our mouths are full of bacteria—some good, and some harmful. Some types of bad bacteria can cause cavities, gingivitis and even periodontal (gum) disease. Without proper oral care and hygiene, these harmful types of bacteria are capable of entering your blood stream through inflamed gums, when inhaled through the mouth or through saliva.

Gum disease, in turn, has been linked to a number of health problems, researchers have found. These include:

• Heart disease: Gum disease may increase the risk of heart disease. Gum disease also is believed to worsen existing heart disease.
• Stroke: Gum disease may increase the risk of the type of stroke caused by blocked arteries.
• Diabetes: People with diabetes and periodontal disease may be more likely to have trouble controlling their blood sugar than diabetics with healthy gums.
• Premature birth: Women who suffer from gum disease during pregnancy may be more likely deliver their baby early, and it is likely her infant may be of low birth weight.

Dr. Chelsea Perry and our team at Elite Dental Care are experts in identifying and treating periodontal disease. Give us a call today at our convenient Westborough, MA office to schedule an appointment to improve your oral health and your overall health, too!

“Is CEREC® right for me?” Dr. Perry explains

October 15th, 2013

CEREC, an acronym Dr. Chelsea Perry and our team at Elite Dental Care of Westborough use, stands for Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics. This state-of-the-art treatment restores damaged teeth in a single appointment!

The procedure involves meeting with Dr. Perry to discuss what to expect with your individual treatment. Once you are in the dental chair, Dr. Perry digitally scans the area in your mouth that needs restorative work and creates a replacement using three-dimensional computer imagery and a milling machine. All of this happens just one appointment and eliminates the need for a temporary crown, the need to have your teeth numbed before the placing of the crown, and eliminates the need to return for a follow-up visit, giving you more time to enjoy your life.

There are many advantages of CEREC treatment over traditional crown technology. They include:

• The convenience of a single visit and less time spent in the chair
• Higher crown-placing accuracy
• Extremely precise and long-lasting, tooth-colored and natural-looking results
• Biocompatible, metal-free, anti-abrasive, and plaque-resistant ceramic materials
• Preserves more healthy tooth material

To learn more about CEREC technology or to schedule an appointment at our convenient Westborough, MA office, we invite you to give us a call today! Dr. Perry and our team look forward to working with you!

Broken Tooth – Is It an Emergency or Not?

October 15th, 2013

Have you ever had that sinking feeling after biting into something soft and chewy and feeling something hard and crunchy instead? You’ve chipped or broken a tooth, but what should you do next? First try to assess the damage by determining whether it’s a chip or a whole tooth.

As Dr. Chelsea Perry will tell you, a broken or chipped tooth is usually not a dental emergency unless you are experiencing a great deal of pain or bleeding, but you should contact us for an appointment shortly afterward. Be sure to mention that you have a broken tooth so we can fit you into our schedule quickly. After a thorough evaluation, we’ll recommend a course of action. If it is a small chip, we may simply smooth it out. For a larger break, the dentist may fill in the space with a composite material that matches your other teeth.

Emergency Dental Care

If you are in severe pain, are bleeding excessively, have a major break, or have lost a tooth, that is a dental emergency and you should contact us. As emergency dental specialists, we’ll be able to schedule an appointment immediately and advise you on the next steps to take.

You can rinse your mouth with warm water and apply pressure to stop the bleeding. An ice pack will help reduce any swelling. Do not take any aspirin as that could increase the amount of bleeding. Should your tooth be knocked out completely, rinse it under running water but do not scrub it. Hold the tooth only by the crown, or the part you normally see above the gum line, not by the root. If you can, put the tooth back into the socket while you travel to our office, or put it in a mild salt solution or milk. Don’t let the tooth become dry, because this can lead to damage. Once you get to our office, our dentist will determine whether the tooth can be saved or if it will need to be replaced.

A broken tooth may not always be an emergency, but it’s best to have it treated with us at Elite Dental Care. While it may only be a cosmetic problem at first, if left too long without treatment, you may experience further damage to your tooth and mouth.

Ask Dr. Perry: “Can I benefit from Invisalign®?”

October 9th, 2013

If you have been thinking of improving your smile, but are apprehensive about wearing braces, Dr. Chelsea Perry and our team at Elite Dental Care are proud to offer our patients a modern approach of straightening teeth called Invisalign. We completely understand your needs and realize many people, especially image-conscious teenagers and adults, want to have their teeth straightened without the discomfort and inconvenience of traditional metal braces. We are here to tell you Invisalign is a great alternative in achieving a beautiful and confident smile for a lifetime!

Unlike traditional braces that are made of metal, Invisalign is made of comfortable, smooth plastic that is virtually invisible. In fact, most people won’t notice that you’re wearing it unless you tell them. Invisalign work in the same fashion as traditional braces, but its aligners are more comfortable and more convenient to wear. Because there are no brackets or wires involved, there’s no need to visit our office for adjustments or emergencies. Your job is simply to put on a new set of aligners every couple of weeks, and your teeth will be straight before you know it! During your initial consultation, Dr. Perry will sit down with you and develop an individual treatment plan to determine the proper course of treatment for the exact movement of your teeth.

Invisalign isn’t simply more comfortable to wear than regular braces; the clear aligners are also removable, meaning you can take them out when you eat without worrying about food getting stuck in braces. You may also remove and clean them easily!

Nothing compares to the level of comfort, convenience, and satisfaction that Invisalign treatment brings. Both teens and adults are great candidates for Invisalign, so we invite you to contact our Westborough dental office to set up an initial consultation and learn more on how Invisalign can give you the smile you’ve always wanted!