Lewisburg Restorative Dentistry

Fillings

Is your smile riddled with metal fillings that distract from its natural beauty? As popular as metal or amalgam fillings were in the past, today they are rarely used at all because they can actually damage the teeth that they are supposed to be protecting.

You might not know this about metal fillings, but they also have a tendency to react to changes in temperature inside your mouth. Think about when you sip your coffee or tea or ice-cold water. The metal is contracting within your tooth, creating a constant movement that can cause the tooth wall to break or fracture. What’s worse, is there could be space between your metal filling and the tooth wall where bacteria love to live and cause decay.

There are safer — and more attractive — solutions to tooth restoration.

To restore small cavities, we rely solely on tooth-colored composite fillings. These fillings are made right in the office, are safer for your teeth than metal fillings, and restore your tooth to a healthy look without weakening the rest of the tooth. If you want to learn more about tooth-colored fillings or restorative dentistry in Lewisburg, please give us a call to set up your appointment.

Porcelain Inlays/Onlays

Sometimes when we’re helping a patient using restorative dentistry in Lewisburg, we opt to use something called a porcelain inlay or onlay. They’re similar to composite or tooth-colored fillings in that they help fix a failing or decayed tooth.

Made of tooth-colored porcelain, inlays and onlays are used for larger restorations because they are able to cover a larger surface of your teeth. We love to use them to help us restore the functional, stress-bearing parts of the tooth.

Porcelain inlays and onlays generally extend over one or more sides of the tooth. They can also be used as a dental crown or cap. They are conservative restorations that require less drilling than metal fillings or composite fillings. So, this means less time for you in the dental chair and more time doing the activities you love.

An inlay or an onlay can often be used to repair only the damaged portion of the tooth, leaving much more of the original tooth structure intact. Inlays and onlays are custom-fabricated by our lab technicians, then placed on your tooth.

Talk to your dentist today about how porcelain inlays and onlays could be a good match for your restorative dentistry needs.

Crowns/Bridges

Our office offers a variety of options for restoring and replacing teeth, returning your smile to an attractive appearance and your bite to optimal function.

Metal-Free Dental Crowns

A dental crown, also called a cap, is a custom-made restoration that repairs and strengthens a tooth that has a fracture, has a large cavity, has an old filling that has failed, or has had root canal therapy. Unlike an inlay or onlay, a crown completely covers the tooth. We only use crowns fabricated of all-porcelain for strength, endurance, and appearance. Dental crowns can also be used for cosmetic purposes, enhancing the appearance of a tooth that is discolored or misshapen.

Dental Bridges

We want to be as ‘metal-free’ for our patients as possible, but depending on your specific case, we can create a custom dental bridge made of porcelain fused to metal.

A dental bridge is a custom-made false tooth (or teeth) placed between two teeth, filling in the area left by a missing tooth. The bridge is held in place by porcelain dental crowns placed on the teeth on each side of the space to be filled. Without metal, the bridge absorbs light, creating a natural-looking smile. As the bridges are metal-free, they are also non-reactive to temperature changes, improving fit, durability, and comfort. Bridges reduce the risk of gum disease, help correct some bite problems, and help improve speech.

Partial Dentures

Practicing restorative dentistry in Lewisburg for so many years, we’ve created a variety of solutions for patients who are struggling with missing teeth. One of the options patients often choose are partial dentures. They’re specially created just for you by our doctors for a dream fit that’s more comfortable than you ever thought possible with dentures.

Made of resin and acrylic, a partial denture is a removable appliance that replaces several missing teeth. A partial denture may also keep the remaining healthy teeth from shifting position in the mouth. Our office offers precision-fit partial dentures that do more than replace missing teeth. Since they do not have a metal base, they are more flexible and comfortable. The results are attractive, secure dentures that allow you to speak, eat, and smile with comfort and confidence.

It might take a little practice and patience on your part to learn how to put in and remove your partial dentures. Over time, you’ll get used to it. If you have any issues or it feels uncomfortable, let us know right away so we can make necessary adjustments.

If you or someone in your family has been struggling with ill-fitting dentures or wants to learn more about the denture process, please contact Union Dental Health today. You’re going to wonder why you waited so long!

Full Dentures

Losing all or most of your teeth is something most of us don’t ever want to experience, but sometimes that’s your best option for moving forward with a healthy, happier life. If you or someone in your family has been considering full or complete dentures for a while but don’t know where to start, consider talking to your dentist at Union Dental Health.

To avoid having that “sunken in” look to your face, it’s important to have your dentures completed by a highly trained dentist. Dentures, if properly fitted, will help to restore your facial shape, making it appear fuller.

Your restorative dentist in Lewisburg can custom-create a set of dentures with porcelain teeth and an acrylic base that look so much like your natural teeth, no one will be able to tell the difference.

Some of the benefits of wearing full dentures are:

• Improve how you chew and bite your foods
• Restore a more youthful appearance
• Eliminate your embarrassment due to missing teeth
• Remove easily for proper brushing and cleaning

If you’re in Union County or anywhere in the Susquehanna Valley and considering dentures, come talk to us. We’ll explain the process and guide you through until you’re smiling wide with your new, comfortable dentures.

Endodontics

Endodontics is just another way of saying root canal — two of dentistry’s most dreaded words. It’s no secret to your restorative dentist in Lewisburg that root canals and endodontics seem to have acquired a bad reputation over the years. This is because the first thing people think about is pain. We’re here to tell you that by using advanced technology, materials, and instrumentation, our entire office makes this widely feared procedure not only tolerable but also often quite comfortable.

Root canals are really a good thing, especially for a damaged or decayed tooth. It’s how we get inside to remove the decay and prep your tooth for the next restorative step. We’re essentially using endodontics and root therapy to save your natural teeth. And the best part is: You’ll never need to schedule an appointment with an out-of-town specialist — it can all be done in our Lewisburg dental office! Root canal therapies are commonly completed in just one visit. Patients are pleasantly surprised when they are finished, astonished at how painless it was. If you’re having trouble with a tooth or teeth and think you might need a root canal or filling, please schedule a consultation with us as soon as possible. We’re here to help make your smile (and you) healthy.

Oral Surgery

As your trusted restorative dentist in Lewisburg, we do everything we can to protect and save your natural teeth. After all, there’s nothing quite like them. However, sometimes it is simply impossible to save your natural tooth due to too much decay or if it’s affecting another tooth causing dental trauma. In cases like this, our best bet might be to perform oral surgery or an extraction. We don’t take oral surgery lightly, so know that we will thoroughly evaluate your needs and goals to determine what type of treatment or surgery is right for you.

The good news is, whatever type of oral surgery we recommend, you can have it completed in the comfort of our Lewisburg dental office with the doctor and team you know and love. No specialists or oral surgeons necessary! (Unless you require full sedation during our procedure.) We can help you with everything from wisdom teeth removal to bony impactions, thanks to our talented doctors with years of experience in oral surgery.  You may not get excited about the idea of oral surgery, but at our practice, you can at least relax about it.

Solea Laser Technology

Thanks to our state-of-the-art Solea® Dental Laser, every visit to see your restorative dentist in Lewisburg can be stress-free. You can stop putting off going to the dentist because you get anxiety the minute you hear a drill or think of a needle. Solea is here for you as an advanced dental laser technology, approved by the FDA, to replace the need for needles, drills, and scalpels in the office. The Solea laser works great for patients of all ages and various restorative dentistry treatments. Using the Solea laser, we can also generally complete treatments without the need for any type of anesthesia.

The laser is silent and vibration-free, helping patients feel more at ease. Because the laser seals your blood vessels and nerve endings while it works, the recovery process is almost instantaneous. There is no bleeding, and stitches aren’t necessary.

Because of its numbing-like effect, patients who have been treated with the Solea laser have experienced no pain, eliminating the need for anesthetics or sedation. Patients no longer have to experience numbness or that “fat lip” feeling.

The Solea laser allows the dentist to offer precise treatment quickly and can have you in and out of the chair in no time. Your dentist may even be able to do multiple treatments at once so you don’t have to schedule multiple visits. The patient saves time and experiences a speedy recovery.