Jaw Joint Pain

If you suffer from jaw joint pain, you know how it can interfere with your daily activities. In order to find relief, the first step is to obtain an accurate diagnosis. When the jaw joint is involved, pain is usually due to a condition called temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ). TMJ may develop due to a jaw injury, arthritis, teeth clenching or a combination of these factors.

Dr. Kazi at Lewelling Dental Care can help. Dr. Kazi is experienced in diagnosing jaw joint pain caused by TMJ. Part of the diagnostic process is taking a medical history and completing an exam. In addition, Dr. Kazi may recommend x-rays to rule out other causes of jaw pain.

Once an accurate diagnosis is made, you can discuss treatment options. Dr. Kazi will educate you on ways to decrease symptoms. For example, applying heat or ice may decrease pain. In some instances, special exercises may help stretch and strengthen the jaw and decrease symptoms.

Lewelling Dental Care also offers night guards, which are often used in order to treat TMJ. The guard is worn while you sleep and helps prevent teeth grinding, which often contributes to symptoms of TMJ. Dr. Kazi will be happy to provide you with more information on night guards and determine if you are a candidate.

For more information on jaw joint pain or to schedule an appointment, please call Lewelling Dental Care at (510) 276-6040 or visit us at www.lewellingdental.com.

Bridges

Bridges

If you have had a tooth extracted due to damage, decay or disease, it is important to have the resulting gap filled since gaps in your smile can cause your remaining teeth to shift out of position. When this happens, your teeth become more susceptible to disease and decay. At Lewelling Dental Care, we can help keep your smile beautiful and functional after an extraction with dental bridges.

Called a bridge because it literally creates a bridge to cross the area where you tooth is missing, this prosthetic tooth replacement is usually made from gold, metal, alloys or porcelain to ensure a strong and durable smile that can last more than a decade if properly cared for.

The process of creating a bridge takes two visits to our office. In the first, we will create abutments out of the existing teeth on both sides of your missing tooth. This is where the bridge will be attached. After the abutments are in place, a mold is made of your mouth for creating the bridge, which will fit and feel as close to your natural teeth as possible. The bridge will consist of two crowns, which will be fixed to the abutments, and a pontic, which is the prosthetic that will replace your missing tooth. We provide you with a temporary bridge while your permanent one is crafted in the lab. On the second visit, the permanent bridge will then be fixed to the abutments with an adhesive.

For more information, call our office in San Lorenzo, CA by calling (510) 276-6040. You can also visit www.LewellingDental.com.

Bonding

Bonding

At Lewelling Dental Care we can transform your smile with dental bonding, which is among the easiest and most affordable cosmetic dental procedures. Called bonding because a tooth-colored resin is bonded to your teeth, this process is used as an alternative to amalgam filling and to repair decayed, chipped, unevenly shaped, fractured or discolored teeth. We achieve this by applying incredibly strong resin to the tooth you would like to restore and then shaping and polishing it until it matches your surrounding teeth.

Not only can this procedure be accomplished in only one visit, but this process also allows you to keep most of your tooth’s original enamel, making bonding preferable to veneers or crowns in many cases. Once we have chosen the right color resin for your smile, your teeth will be slightly abraded to roughen it and then coated lightly with a conditioning liquid, which will help the bonding material adhere. Then we will apply a putty-like resin that will be molded and smoothed until it is in the proper shape and then hardened with an ultraviolet light or laser.

After the bonding material has hardened, we will trim and shape it even more and then polish it until it shines like a tooth. Altogether, the procedure usually takes between 30 minutes to an hour to complete one tooth.
If you’re unhappy with your teeth but unwilling to go as far as veneers, bonding can be used to improve your smile quickly and effectively. Schedule an appointment with Lewelling Dental Care to get bonding performed in San Lorenzo. Just call (510) 276-6040. For more information, visitwww.LewellingDental.com.

Veneers

Veneers

If you’re unhappy with the way your teeth look, veneers are an effective method for reshaping and redesigning your smile. Whether your teeth have stains, gaps, crack, chips or other issues, you can get the smile you've always wanted with veneers. Veneers are thin, ceramic shells that cover the existing tooth structure in your mouth, and we can use them to transform your smile.

Having veneers placed usually only takes two to three visits. During the first visit, we can discuss the shape and look of the smile you want to accomplish, and then we will prepare your teeth. We prepare teeth for veneers by removing some of the enamel on the surface of your teeth. The amount of enamel that is removed will be nearly equal to the thickness of the veneers. This ensures that your smile will still feel natural and not bulky after the procedure.

Once the enamel has been removed, an impression is taken of your mouth so that the veneers can be fabricated to fit your existing teeth. This fabrication process takes between 10 to 14 days and is done in a laboratory of the highest standards. You will be provided with temporary veneers during your wait. Then the final veneers are bonded to your teeth to create an attractive smile that looks and feels natural.
To learn more about veneers in San Lorenzo, CA, call Lewelling Dental Care at (510) 276-6040 or visit www.LewellingDental.com.