Author: Dental Express

Teeth whitening isn’t permanent. This is because people expose their teeth to foods and beverages that can cause staining, meaning whiteness may fade in just one month. The degree of whiteness men and women are able to achieve varies from patient to patient, depending on the condition of their teeth. Dental Express in San Diego, CA offers professional teeth whitening that has been proven to work better than over-the-counter whitening. After a dental exam and cleaning, we can determine which whitening treatment will be the best one to meet your goals.

Best ways to whiten teeth

We understand how important it is for you to have a white smile. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we can help you to address any concerns you have with how your smile looks. While there are many over-the-counter options, our dental practice offers professional natural teeth whitening that helps keep your teeth white longer. Our whitening treatments can brighten your teeth by several shades after just one treatment. We use professional-strength gel that works by reaching beneath the surface of your teeth to effectively remove deep stains. When you’re looking to improve your smile’s appearance and to attain a brighter smile, our professional team can help.

Is teeth whitening good for my teeth?

According to the American Dental Association, teeth whitening is safe. Most patients can see results with our professional teeth whitening treatments. Your experience will vary based on your goals for your smile. While at-home teeth whitening is safe and effective, it isn’t as effective as professional teeth whitening.

Types of teeth whitening

Dental Express is proud to offer two types of teeth whitening for our patients in San Diego, CA. Based on your concerns, we can help you to choose the best way to whiten your teeth, whether in our office or in the comfort of your home. The types of teeth whitening we offer include:

1. Boost teeth whitening: Our in-office Boost teeth whitening treatment allows you to brighten your teeth during a one-hour session. We will help you to choose the best shade for your teeth and then apply the gel to your teeth. We use an LED light to help speed up the whitening process. This treatment works best for those with darker stains.

2. Speed teeth whitening: This at-home teeth whitening system allows you to brighten your teeth, usually, in just 20 minutes. You will need multiple kits to see the full results. This kit comes with gel application, trays, and an LED light that helps accelerate the whitening process. Our at-home kits work great and offer a more subtle effect than our in-office whitening treatment.

How long will teeth whitening results last?

Ultimately, this varies from patient to patient. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we usually recommend one in-office teeth whitening treatment annually with follow-up take-home whitening sessions. However, every patient will differ, depending on their existing oral health and the shade of their enamel. Your oral hygiene routine will also directly affect how long your whitening results last.

Teeth whitening aftercare

After each whitening session, you may experience sensitivity to hot or cold, but this should stop after a few days. Routine dental examinations are important for maintaining your results. Our exams look for gum tissue health and the state of each tooth to help keep your teeth and gums looking and feeling their best. Touch-ups with teeth whitening can be done after your biannual dental cleanings. Having teeth whitening doesn’t indicate your teeth are healthy; that is what a dental cleaning is for. Avoid drinking or eating foods that can stain after teeth whitening to keep your teeth looking bright for as long as possible.

Learn more about teeth whitening in San Diego, CA

When you’re looking for safe and effective ways to brighten your smile, professional teeth whitening is a great choice. After a thorough exam, our professional team at Dental Express can determine whether or not you’re a good candidate for teeth whitening. If so, we can help you choose the best treatment option for your oral health. To schedule an appointment to learn more about our professional teeth whitening options, call our San Diego, CA office today.

Dental exams should be scheduled regularly and not just when you think something is wrong. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, our professional team believes that preventative dentistry is most important. Regular exams and cleanings help us to detect dental problems early on before a toothache begins or there’s a need for extensive dental treatments. Good dental health also requires an efficient at-home oral hygiene routine.

What happens at a dental exam?

During a dental exam, we learn about your medical history and your oral health. We learn if you smoke, have allergies, or have other medical factors that can affect your oral health. We also may want to know about your past dental history. With all of this helpful information, we can get a full picture of your health.

We look at your teeth, gums, jaw, and mouth for tooth decay, oral cancer, or disease. We use x-rays to see any abnormalities that we cannot see with the naked eye. After an exam, patients usually have a dental cleaning where tartar is scraped away from the teeth. After they’re clean, the teeth are polished. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we believe that our job isn’t just to resolve dental problems but also to help prevent them from happening.

Why it’s important to have regular dental exams

Here are some reasons why regular dental exams are important:

1. Oral cancer prevention: Oral cancer is serious and, oftentimes, isn’t diagnosed. When left untreated, it can quickly progress. We conduct oral cancer screenings during dental exams. An early-stage oral cancer diagnosis is treatable. Our dental team is highly trained to recognize signs of oral cancer.

2. Detect plaque, tartar, or cavities: When plaque builds, it can become difficult to remove. If it is left untreated, it turns to tartar, which is hard to remove without the help of a dental professional. Regular exams and cleanings prevent tartar from creating holes in teeth, which lead to cavities. This can be avoided with regular dental exams.

3. Prevent gum disease: Plaque and tartar buildup causes tooth decay, and can also damage the gums. When tartar builds up, an infection in the gums occurs, known as gingivitis. As it progresses, the teeth can become loose or even lost. In the early stages of periodontal disease, it is reversible. However, if it is left untreated, more extensive periodontal disease treatments are necessary.

4. Monitor bad habits: Smoking, drinking, or eating a high-acid diet, and clenching or grinding your teeth can all be detrimental to your teeth and gums. When you have a dental exam, our dentist can check for oral damage caused by these habits. Regularly visiting the dentist allows you to fix the damage that is already done and to help maintain your oral health.

5. Find problems using x-rays: Oftentimes, our dentist cannot detect all dental problems with their eyes alone. This is why dental x-rays are important. They can find issues, such as impacted teeth, jawbone damage, cysts, bone decay, or even tumors. Treating these issues as soon as possible is important to your overall health.

Oral Hygiene Tips

Regular dental exams and routine dental cleanings are important, and so is proper oral hygiene. Our team at Dental Express in San Diego, CA offers professional advice on the best ways to brush and floss from home, including

• Brush properly: Brush your teeth at a 45-degree angle using back and forth strokes across the sides of the teeth while focusing on the gumline. Brush at least two minutes twice daily. Use a small or medium-size brush that is small enough to reach into hard-to-reach areas.

• Floss: Floss at least once daily. Use a forward or backward C shape motion while wrapping floss around each tooth.

• Use mouthwash: A cavity-fighting mouthwash helps prevent gingivitis, which can lead to red, tender, or bleeding gums.

Take care of your teeth and gums with regular dental exams

A regular dental exam allows you to take the best possible care of your teeth and gums in San Diego, CA. At Dental Express, we believe in preventative dentistry that focuses on promoting good oral hygiene and regular dental visits. Call today to schedule a dental exam with our team.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed a lot of things about our daily lives. Regular visits to the dentist have also changed. Many dental practices, such as Dental Express in San Diego, CA, have reopened and are using CDC guidelines to provide the safest dental care. With the help of personal protective equipment (PPE), our dental team can both protect patients and themselves while performing comprehensive dental exams and routine dental cleanings.

It’s no surprise that so many people are wondering, “is it safe to go to the dentist now?” Because COVID-19 Pandemic spreads through respiratory droplets that get into the mouth, nose, or eyes, you may be scared to sit in a dental chair. Viral transmission can happen if someone isn’t showing symptoms. Our dental team is tested and will wear masks at all times to help ensure safety.

Before your appointment

Before your appointment at Dental Express, our office may call to ask questions about your health. These same questions may be asked again before any dental service is performed. Our dental office will limit the number of people that can be brought into your appointment. We suggest that you leave your children at home or allow your teenage children to go into the office alone while you wait outside.

At your appointment

When you arrive at our dental office, you will be asked to wait outside until we are ready for you. This helps us to reduce the number of people we have inside and the amount of time that you’re close to others. Your temperature will be taken when you enter the office. We will have hand sanitizer and hand-sanitizing wipes available for you to wipe down furniture and other things. We have covered many things so that we can easily clean between patients. We have taken these precautions to help protect you and our team while we provide you dental care.

After your appointment

Our staff will thoroughly clean all areas that were used during a visit. It’s important that if you start feeling ill with COVID-19 Pandemic symptoms within 14 days of your appointment to call our office so we can properly notify others that were around you or in the same office or exam room after you.

Can I safely have a dental cleaning?

At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we suggest you don’t put off dental appointments. This is because teeth cannot heal themselves, so if you have a dental issue, it can progress to become painful and/or need an extensive dental procedure, such as periodontal disease treatment.

What about dental emergencies?

Never neglect what you feel is a dental emergency since it can seriously impact your overall health. For example, if an infection is left untreated, it can get into the bloodstream and cause serious health problems.

Call us right away if you’re having a dental emergency, including:

• Broken tooth

• Severe bleeding in the gums

• Infection

• Severe tooth pain

• Swelling in the gums or face

• Abscess

We can safely treat your dental emergency and will follow all CDC guidelines while you’re in our dental office.

Learn more about dental safety at Dental Express

At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we diligently follow all CDC guidelines to best protect our patients and our staff. We can explain everything we are doing to protect you and our staff before you even visit our dental office. While keeping yourself and others safe from COVID-19 is important, so is your routine dental care. More than ever an efficient oral hygiene routine from home is important as it helps to keep your teeth and gums as healthy as possible in between dental appointments. To schedule an appointment for a dental exam or dental cleaning, call our San Diego, CA dental office today.

Learn the Correct Way to Brush Your Teeth

To maintain the best possible oral health, closely follow a regular at-home oral hygiene routine. Your oral health can drastically impact your overall health. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, our professional team teaches our patients some of the best oral hygiene tips to keep their teeth and gums healthy. While maintaining a regular routine of comprehensive dental exams and routine dental cleanings are important, learning the best way to brush your teeth helps prevent dental pain and discomfort in the future.

Should I floss or brush my teeth first?

Whether you floss or brush first isn’t an important detail to a successful oral hygiene routine. What matters most is that you both brush and floss regularly. Flossing first helps to loosen plaque between the teeth. It removes food particles and debris from between the teeth in the tiny spaces that the toothbrush cannot touch.

When you eliminate plaque that causes tooth decay, your oral health will benefit. It’s important to focus more on the quality of cleaning your teeth and gums. While brushing your teeth removes plaque from the surface of the teeth, it cannot eliminate it entirely, which makes flossing important. Ultimately, the order in which you brush and floss is up to you; the focus should be getting your teeth and gums as clean as possible.

How to brush your teeth

The American Dental Association suggests brushing your teeth at least twice daily. Replace your toothbrush every few months or when the bristles start to fray. Use an ADA-accepted fluoride toothpaste. Place your toothbrush at a 45-degree angle focused on the gums. Gently move the toothbrush back and forth to brush the inner, outer, and chewing sides of your teeth. Brush each of the four quadrants of the mouth for at least 30 seconds. Also, don’t forget to brush your teeth, which harbor harmful bacteria that can lead to tooth decay.

How not to brush your teeth

There are many ways that you can incorrectly brush your teeth, including:

1. Choosing the wrong brush: Always use a brush with soft bristles that can bend. Also, a small-headed brush is advisable as it allows you to get to hard-to-reach areas easier.

2. Brushing too hard: Don’t scrub the teeth too hard. This can lead to red and swollen gums. Plaque is soft, so you don’t need to scrub to remove it.

3. Not brushing long enough: You should brush for at least two minutes every time you brush.

4. Brushing incorrectly: Don’t brush back and forth. Start at the gums and go up and down in a circular motion to brush correctly.

5. Forgetting the gumline: Bacteria remains where the tooth meets the gum. Don’t miss that area or you will increase your risk of tooth decay and periodontal disease.

6. Brushing right after a meal: Dental professionals suggest waiting for at least 15 or 20 minutes after a meal before you brush. This is because the acid is still sitting in your mouth and you’re now using an abrasive that can erode your teeth.

What does flossing do for your health?

Flossing helps reduce your chances of developing periodontal disease. This gum inflammation occurs when bacteria below the gumline is left in your mouth. Gum disease is associated with many medical conditions, including stroke, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and Type II diabetes. Regular dental examinations and routine dental cleanings at Dental Express in San Diego, CA help to effectively remove plaque.

Learn how healthy teeth and gums keep your oral health at its best

At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we teach our patients tips on maintaining their oral health at home. Oral care tips help you to understand how brushing teeth and flossing can help you keep optimal oral health. When you leave bacteria, food particles, or plaque on your teeth or in the gums, gingivitis can develop. Flossing helps reduce this risk. Our goal is to help all our patients achieve healthy teeth with an efficient at-home oral hygiene routine. To schedule an appointment to learn tips for healthy teeth and gums, call us today.

At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we understand that coming to the dentist for regular dental exams and routine dental cleanings can cause many of our patients’ anxiety. However, it is these visits that help keep your teeth and gums healthy. The mouth is the gateway to the rest of your body, which means that these exams and cleanings help keep your overall health at its best too. When determining what makes a good dentist, consider the most important general dentistry services that patients of all ages need to maintain their oral health.

Tips for finding the best dentist

The American Dental Association offers many suggestions for finding the best possible dentist for your oral health needs. First, ask family, friends, and coworkers for recommendations for San Diego, CA dentists. Next, contact local or state dental societies for lists of certified and recommended dentists for routine dental examinations and dental cleanings.

Questions to ask a general dentist

Before committing to working with a dentist near you, you should have a consultation where you can learn more about their experience, skills, and training. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we offer these visits to answer any questions that potential patients may have about our services.

Some important questions to ask during this informative visit include:

1. Do you submit claims to all insurance companies? Finding out if they take your insurance coverage is perhaps one of the most important questions to ask before having any procedures at their San Diego, CA office.

2. Do you have payment plans for those who are uninsured? If you don’t have dental insurance, you will want to work with someone that offers patient financing options, such as Credit Care. Understanding your financial obligations ahead of time will help you to make an informed decision.

3. Are they members of professional associations? Members of the American Dental Association follow a code of professional conduct, the principles of ethics, and advisory opinions. They also complete continuing education courses that make them up to date on the latest technologies and techniques for the dental industry.

4. What are your office hours? This is especially important for those with limited schedules. If you need an office that has late hours or extended weekend hours, this may be a major determinant on which general dentist you choose in Smile Dentistry San Diego, CA.

5. Do you offer emergency dental care services? Unfortunately, emergencies do happen, and understanding the protocol associated with emergency dental care helps you be better prepared in the future.

6. Are cost estimates given for treatment plans upfront? When discussing treatment, you will want to know what to expect in terms of what your financial obligation will be (if applicable) and how many visits does the treatment take?

These are just some of the many questions that can help patients determine the Best Dentist San Diego near them to meet their needs.

Understanding general dentistry services

General dentistry covers many oral health needs. Our general dentists evaluate oral conditions that involve teeth, jawbones, jaw joints, gums, and soft tissue. Our goal is to preserve your natural structure as much as possible. General dentistry services include comprehensive dental exams, routine dental cleanings, diagnostic x-rays, fillings, crowns, gum disease treatment, sealants, and mouth guards. Our goal is to keep your teeth and gums as healthy as possible through bi-annual dental cleanings and annual cleanings. We advise our patients to visit us before a dental problem becomes severe as, oftentimes, this will lead to pain and lengthy procedures that could have been prevented.

Choose Dental Express in San Diego, CA for professional dental care

Comfort, professionalism, and a caring approach are just some of the many qualities that many patients look for in a dentist. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we pride ourselves on putting safety first for our patients. We never compromise quality at our office and provide personalized care for patients of all ages. To learn more about our dentists and what our team can do for your oral health, call today to schedule a consultation.

To have the best possible health, you must consider your oral health too. The mouth significantly impacts your general health. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we teach our patients optimal oral hygiene tips that allow them to keep their teeth healthy from home. While regular dental exams and routine dental cleanings are important, maintaining oral health from home helps ensure that no dental issues arise in-between visits. With dental offices closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, except for dental emergencies, it’s increasingly important to keep your teeth healthy from home. Our professional team can offer important preventive dentistry tips that assist you to maintain oral health from your home.

What is preventive dentistry?

Preventive dentistry helps our patients in San Diego, CA minimize their risk of tooth decay or gum disease. An effective at-home oral hygiene routine of regular brushing and flossing can achieve that outcome. Our experienced team approaches dental care by creating a healthy mouth that provides overall health. Regular dental exams and routine dental cleanings assist our patients with keeping their teeth and gums healthy. Our staff can also provide useful tips on how to keep your teeth healthy between office visits.

How oral health influences overall health

Maintaining oral health will decrease your risk of developing many health problems. To make sure that you have the best possible health, you will want to visit our professional team at Dental Express in San Diego, CA who will collaborate with your physicians when any issues occur that can affect your overall health. Without efficient oral hygiene, many health problems can arise, including:

• Heart disease

• High blood pressure

• Type II Diabetes

• Stroke

• Dementia

• Premature birth

• Some cancers

Uncontrolled tooth decay or gum disease can lead to tooth loss, which can impact your health too.

How to correctly brush your teeth

For a healthy mouth and smile, the American Dental Associates suggests that you brush your teeth twice a day. Replace your toothbrush every few months or as soon as the bristles become frayed. Use ADA-accepted fluoride toothpaste. To brush correctly, place the toothbrush at a 45-degree angle at the gums. Gently move the brush back and forth. Brush all surfaces of the teeth for 30 seconds for each of the four quadrants of the mouth.

Why is flossing important?

Unhealthy gums can increase your risk of tooth loss or the need for a tooth root canal. While brushing at least twice a day is important, brushing alone can’t protect you from developing gum disease. When left untreated, gum disease can lead to receding gums or tooth loss. Bacteria left in your mouth can even end up in your bloodstream.

This makes a good at-home oral hygiene routine that includes flossing important. To floss the most efficiently, we suggest holding the floss with most of the floss around both of your middle fingers. Leave just an inch or two for the teeth you’re working on. Hold the floss tightly with the thumbs or index fingers. Place the dental floss or your floss pick between two teeth and gently glide it up and down, rubbing the sides of each tooth. Curve the floss at the base of the tooth to form a C shape, which allows you to enter between the gums and the tooth. Repeat these steps for your entire mouth.

Learn how good oral hygiene and flossing keep you healthy

At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, our professional team can teach our patients how to best care for their teeth at home. Oral care tips help us keep your teeth and gums healthy at home and not just during routine dental cleanings and regular dental exams. Flossing removes bacteria, plaque, and food particles stuck between the teeth. It reduces your chance of developing tooth decay or gum disease too. To schedule a dental examination to learn more about oral hygiene, contact our office today. We pride ourselves on helping our patients to achieve healthy teeth at all times.

When you’re experiencing severe dental symptoms, such as a persistent and acute toothache or a cracked tooth, it’s important to quickly seek emergency dental care. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many dental practices are only seeing patients with dental emergencies. This makes it important for you to understand what warrants an immediate dental visit at Dental Express in San Diego, CA. Our professional team wants to help resolve your pain and discomfort as quickly as possible.

Signs that you are experiencing a dental emergency

It’s difficult to know when something is severe enough to need help from an emergency dentist. An untreated dental issue can impact your overall health. This makes it vital for you to contact our professional team at Dental Express in San Diego, CA immediately after experiencing a dental emergency. We are committed to offering urgent dental care 24/7 for our patients.

Here are some signs that you may be experiencing a dental emergency:

1. Tooth damage: Generally, cracks or chips can wait until regular hours. However, if you have a large break in your tooth, it is considered a dental emergency. A severe break can lead to damage inside the tooth, which may increase your risk of needing a root canal later.

2. Severe pain: If your tooth pain or sensitivity has continued to get worse over time, it could mean you’re experiencing an infection. In cases where a toothache doesn’t go away, it’s important to contact our emergency dentist at Dental Express in San Diego, CA. When left untreated, an infection in the tooth could get into the bloodstream and lead to serious health problems.

3. Lost tooth: If you have lost a tooth, place it in milk and saliva to best preserve it. The faster you can get your tooth back into the socket, the better the chance it will be functional for you again.

4. Abscess: Any signs of an abscess warrant a visit to our emergency dentist. An abscessed tooth means there is an infection at the root of the tooth. This will require a procedure where the tooth is thoroughly drained in order to treat it.

5. Swollen jaw: Swelling in the jaw can also signal an infection. Other signs of infection include bad breath, trouble breathing or swallowing, or fever. These symptoms warrant the need for urgent dental care at our office.

6. Metal taste: If you’re tasting metal, an old filling may have cracked or loosened. Emergency dental care can fully restore your tooth before any bacteria gets inside, leading to the need for more extensive dental procedures in the future.

When should I seek emergency dental care?

Many injuries or situations are considered dental emergencies. At Dental Express in San Diego, CA, we specialize in treating these situations to properly restore our patients’ oral health. Loose or dislodged teeth, gum injuries, and lost fillings or crowns are just a few examples of when urgent dental care is needed. Depending on your dental emergency, our emergency dentist may provide immediate treatment or prescribe antibiotics to resolve an infection before going further. Once the infection has cleared, they can provide the necessary treatment.

Treating tooth pain

The type of treatment we will use to treat your tooth pain will depend on its cause. After a thorough dental examination, we can recommend the best solution.

Some treatment methods we use to root canal pain treatment and dental emergencies can include:

• Fillings

• Crowns

• Root canal therapy

• Topical solutions

• Antibiotics

Learn more about urgent dental care services from an emergency dentist

It’s important that you’re always aware of what is going on in your mouth to avoid any serious dental issues from occurring. Any significant changes can signal a dental problem. When you have tooth pain or notice other signs of a dental emergency, you should call to schedule an emergency dental care visit with Dental Express in San Diego, CA. We are dedicated to helping our patients with any dental emergency they may be experiencing. We are available to both restore your oral health and to help resolve any pain or discomfort you may be experiencing.