Family Dentistry | Shades Creek Dental

Comprehensive Examination & “Healthy Mouth” Cleaning

At the core of our “patient-centered care” approach is the comprehensive exam and custom cleaning. Our comprehensive exam is a thorough evaluation of your oral health, and sets the foundation for future dental needs. The exam consists of intra-oral photography, all digital x-rays of your teeth, muscle and joint evaluation, oral cancer screening, examination of the teeth and gums, a treatment plan formulation, and making sure we answer all questions that you have regarding your oral health. If there are no immediate concerns or barriers to care, we will then clean your teeth and give proper home care instruction so you may keep your smile at its best.

Click here to learn more about what a comprehensive exam is, and why you need one!

And best of all, we can provide service to your entire family! Read more about our family dental services here.

Emergency Dental Care

Dental emergencies never happen at convenient times. Nobody plans to have a tooth chipped or knocked loose, but when it happens, you need to act quickly! Whether it is from trauma, cracked or broken teeth, or you wake up with tooth pain, the team at Shades Creek Dental is here for your urgent dental care needs. We know dental emergencies can be enormously stressful for you and your family, so we work to make emergency dental care easy by forwarding our messages to the on-call phone, so we can answer your questions and have Dr. MacBeth see you as soon as possible. Remember, if you have any swelling that is making it hard to breathe, or a fever associated with the tooth pain, please seek emergency care at a hospital near you.

Deep Periodontal Cleaning

Life can interfere with even the best of intentions, and the recommended frequency of check-ups can be overlooked. When this happens, a painless but destructive periodontal infection may establish in your gum tissue and cause bleeding while you brush and floss. Often our team may prescribe a more advanced periodontal cleaning to remove the calculus deposits that have built up on the teeth. Early intervention can heal the inflammation of the gums and limit the spread to the surrounding bone. The procedure of scaling and root planning removes the calculus and affected tissues above and below the gum line. Depending on the severity of the disease, we may recommend completing the process in multiple steps to ensure your comfort.

Fluoride

Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral found in many foods, tap water, toothpastes and mouth rinses, and is a key component in developing strong teeth and preventing tooth decay. Fluoride works by replacing minerals lost due to acids secreted by the bacteria left behind on your teeth. Dr. MacBeth and his team will work closely with you to help establish an effective home care routine, and determine which level of fluoride is best for you to maintain proper dental health.

Nightguard

For patients experiencing tooth wear and jaw pain from nighttime grinding and clenching, also known as bruxism, Dr. MacBeth may recommend an occlusal appliance to help alleviate the complications associated with the condition. The appliance is worn at night (hence the name “nightguard”) to create a barrier between the upper and lower teeth, eliminating the continued damage caused by these frictions. If you wake up in the morning with jaw, head, and neck pains, you might suffer from bruxism and require one of these apparatuses.