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Beautiful Dental Implants in Louisville

Dental Implants – As close to a real tooth as you can get

Is Implant Dentistry for You?

Dental Implants replace missing teeth without the negative side effects of other procedures that could solve the same problem. With implants, your natural teeth are not damaged, and once the implant is finished, you will probably forget you even have it. The success rate is in the 90% range.

Why choose us to have your implant placed?

Ideal Dentistry focuses on providing you with the most comfortable, convenient and successful dental experience possible. You do not need to see multiple dentists or offices to have an implant placed – we do it all. From the day you have your private consultation where we listen to you and answer all your questions, to the day you walk out of the office with your new teeth ready to eat and chew anything, we cater to you and all your needs. Furthermore, Dr. Neal has a reputation for providing excellent comprehensive and esthetic dentistry. Our experience in managing complex cases and consistently obtaining beautiful results ensures that your implant will also be a success.

When we place your implant we have more control over where it is placed and how it is restored. The end result is a more pleasant, convenient, esthetic and longer lasting implant.

Dr. Neal places only premium implants, not the usual “clones” used by many other dentists (such as Implant Direct). Make sure you are getting the AUTHENTIC, brand name implant, not a cheaper clone – ask you dentist to see if BEFORE they place it. Please visit their very informative site for more detailed information:

http://www.biohorizons.com/patients.aspx

Please feel free to call our office anytime with questions or comments. There is so much information available regarding implants that it can get confusing. We would be happy to discuss your unique situation, just call and make an appointment for one of our dentist to take a quick look at your teeth.

Bad Fitting Crown Case Study

I love to help people and the best way I am currently able to do that is to be an advocate for patients who are the victim of poor dentistry. This may sound a bit harsh to many dentists but after seeing thousands of terrible crowns, unnecessary root canal treatments and patients being blown off by dentists, I feel I need to stand firm and help where I can.

This case came to me last week, January 2018. The patient had the following comment to my blog post about another bad fitting crown case.

This was her comment:

Hi,

First of all thank you so much for your time and answering all the questions.

I have root canal done on upper left tooth(24) and large filling on the tooth next to it(25 I think) and few minor fillings after first ever visit to dentist. I did get second opinion before I got the first root canal. But ever since I got the root canal plus crown(for 24) and filling done on 25, the tooth 25 was feeling high all the time and they adjusted so many times, I was told that it needs root canal because it is feeling high even after so many adjustments, this time I trusted them and did not go for a second opinion. I got a root canal done and had crown in place. Bite still feels high and off, in fact they can see that the I’m biting high on crowns they adjusted so many times and still wasn’t feeling right, on top of that I was getting constant headache in my right temple, but I didn’t think headache would be related to bite.

Earlier they have suggested me to use night guard ordered one for me ,so I went to get a night guard at that time and I mentioned to the dentist I was seeing on that day about my headaches he looked at bite on my left and right side , said I’m biting high on couple of lower teeth adjusted on both sides. Ever since than my bite feels so weird and my headaches didn’t get any better , so I asked other dentist in their group to have a look and she said she can not see anything but smoothed that tooth on lower right. Still nothing changed.

So I mentioned to them about it and then they send me to some in their group who is specialized in bite and he checked my bite and looks fine , I’m biting bit high on of crowns. When I mentioned to him about feeling high lower right he has done some adjustment to upper right, After that my headaches are getting worst and my right jaw and temple hurts when I bite and I’m having neck pain as well. I was told to use night gaurd strictly for a week but it doesn’t seem to help either. I feel some pressure in the very back when I wear it and when I wake up my bite feels so different/ weird and always feeling high where the crowns are when I bite feeling pressure on tooth behind new crown, having constant jaw pain , headache.

I feel very unfortunate with these bite issues and feel like I should have never went to the dentist. Now I’m very afraid to let anyone touch my teeth.

Do you think crowns are causing these bite issues? if the bite is high on left side Can It cause headache on right temple? Can nightguard fix the bite problem? Please let me know your opinion. Thank you so much in advance.

After reading this I asked the patient to send me her x-rays and photos, which she did and I have permission to share this with you all as a learning experience.

This was my initial response to her via the comment on the blog:

This is a sad situation but an incredible good learning experience for everyone reading this. Let me address one issue at a time. First, the fact that the dentist said you need a root canal since the bite is high is not only not true it is ludicrous. If you went to the dentist without a bite issue and they placed a bad crown then doing a root canal due to the bite now being wrong is in my opinion unethical.

The second crown still was wrong and they never were able to correct the bite. This essentially means you need a good dentist to do it right. Getting the bite right is not rocket science.

Third, making a nightguard before fixing the bad crown is also a bad move. When you mentioned you are hitting on the back teeth with the biteguard in I can clearly picture the type of nightguard they made…it needs to be adjusted to fit correctly or it is just an expensive piece of plastic. You are clearly hitting on the back teeth first due to the nightguard which is making the situation worse.

You need to leave that group and find a dentist that puts you first, has experience and can solve your problem.

I am happy to help by looking at “new” X-rays of the crowns and photos. Ask your Dentist to take bite wings and send me the originals via email. Photos help as well. This will let me determine the quality of the work real quickly. I do free consults like this all the time so people can be helped and not neglected anymore. All information for free consults should go to info@idealdentistry DOT COM (spelled out to prevent spam). Sorry for your trouble.

Upon receiving the x-rays and photos it was very clear to me what the problem was. The fact the these x-rays and photos are available to all the dentists that were involved in the treatment of this patient and no resolution has been achieved is not only frustrating but terribly sad for the profession.

The basic, very basic issue is that the initial crown and filling the patient had done were not fitting correctly. In fact, the crown, as is clearly visible on the x-ray, does not seat all the way down onto the tooth resulting in a tooth that now is hitting all the opposing teeth first and allowing bacteria and consequentially decay invade around the edges. I circled the areas where the crown does not close all the way onto the tooth. The second, newer crown, the one to the left on the photo, fits even worse!

What are we looking at in these x-rays? The white part of the crown picture needs to touch against the gray part of the tooth. The black line between the two (circled) is empty space which means the crown never was seated all the way down. Often this is the case because the contacts between the crowns were not properly adjusted.

The following photo demonstrates the amount of reduction the dentist made, cutting the new crown down with a coarse diamond. You can still see the scratches in the surface of the two crowns form the diamond cutter. I wonder if this was ever polished out or if the rough surface was left like this?

You can also see, on the first picture above, the blue marking tape is still present. This type of marking tape is the thicker kind that I do not like to use. You can be much more precise using a thinner mylar type of occlusal tape.

So, I have to conclude that the decision was made not to redo the bad fitting crown but to rather try to cut a ton of porcelain off the crown, not polish it and tell the patient that a nightguard (which she did not need prior to any of this dentistry) will solve her problem. Wow.

Now that we know the crowns are bad, the fit is bad and the occlusion (the way they touch the opposing tooth) is bad, let’s address the nightguard solution….

I am a strong believer in properly adjusted nightguards. All to often I see patients coming to see me as a second opinion and they show me their nightguard that was never really adjusted right. The are essentially only hitting on the back few teeth which is making the entire situation even worse. A nightguard that is not properly adjusted is just an expensive piece of plastic! The general rule is that if the patient feels they are hitting wrong on the guard, then they are. Adjustments must be made until the guard is a therapeutic device which will then alleviate some grinding, reduce stress on the teeth, help evaluate joint and bite problems and many more things. Nightguards are amazing if they are used correctly. Often unfortunately they are just ordered by the dentist, delivered by an assistant and forgotten.

So, this patient was frustrated and did not know where to turn so she searched the web for bad fitting crowns, second opinions, and eventually came to my blog. I wish I could help more people receive answers and teach dentists how to solve these issues when they first come up. It does not take too much work to deliver a good fitting crown to start with and create a filling that fits properly. It is perceivable that both root canals and crowns could have been prevented with earlier interception and quality care. I ask that dentists select their dental labs not just on price, but quality. It saves a lot of time for both the dentist and the patient!

The solution? This patient needs to see a dentist that can redo these two crowns, correctly, using a quality dental laboratory and have a new, good fitting and properly adjusted nightguard made. This will cost a little more but would have been a lot cheaper had this top quality dentist been seen in the first place.

I welcome questions from patients AND dentists. Anything I can do to help improve the quality of dentistry, count me in.

Keep Smiling.

Why Teeth Fracture

You are having a great meal at a fancy restaurant, enjoying your salad and then bam, you bite on what feels like a little stone. No big deal, you have done this before, until you take another bite….at which point you feel a sharp pain that seems to go through your entire body!

What just happened?

Well, you fractured a tooth right down the middle. The tooth is separated and the nerve is exposed. This however is unknown to most patients and they continue to move along as normal, chewing on the other side. Often patients will put up with this pain for days until calling their dentist. Food, especially chicken, will eventually get trapped between the fractures, further separating the segments and eventually creating more pain.

The tissue around the tooth is very inflamed and food has packed into the fracture.

What is the treatment for a fracture like this? This tooth had to be extracted and we placed a dental implant. See the x-ray below of a similar case.

 This implant will need to integrate with the bone for 3-4 months, at which point we can put a new tooth on top of it. Here is an x-ray of what a few restored implants look like.

Now to the important part – how do we prevent these fractures?

Fractures happen for many reasons, most frequently a tooth has an old Silver Mercury filling, aka Amalgam, that has expanded and contracted for many years while the tooth, being mostly a crystal, has not. This expansion has resulted in many fractures in the tooth and then one single bite on something on the right part of the tooth will fracture that part off.

I have not placed an Amalgam for over 20 years for this and many other reasons! There just are better and healthier options out there.

Prevention of fractures – To prevent fractures, don’t place fillings that tend to fracture teeth. Second, adjust the bite so that the teeth are coming together correctly! If one tooth is taking the brunt of the force then that tooth will also fail first. Third, I am a huge believer in wearing a properly adjusted nightguard/bruxism appliance. Note the emphasis on properly adjusted. All too often do new patients bring in their nightguards from other dentists and they are doing more harm then good. Really frustrating! It is not just an expensive piece of plastic, it is a therapeutic appliance!

Prevention is the key in dentistry. If we wait until the fracture happens then the outcome will certainly be less ideal. For this reason I urge people to seek out preventative and protective options now rather than wait for the catastrophe to happen.

Give us a call if you would like us to check to see how your teeth are doing and prevent future issues. We are here to serve.

502-228-4585

Keep smiling.

Brighten Your Smile, Brighten Your Life

I am not in the tooth mechanic business, I simply work with teeth to improve the life of my patients. This is why I call it life enhancing dentistry.

Every smile I make is as unique as the patient it is created for, designed with critical input from the patient and sculpted by hand.

The patient has control over color, shape, and overall design while I guarantee the best materials and a perfect fit. Of course I help as much as is desired, and no smile is done until the patient is happy.

My favorite part of the whole process is to see the confidence the patient gains when the smile is completed. Frequently I hear about all the positive life changes the patient has gone through with their new smile, which makes my heart smile.

For the past 20 years I have had the pleasure of brightening the lives of my patients with beautiful smiles. If you are looking to bring that sparkle back into your life, give me a call, I am here to serve and would love to show you what truly artistic dentistry can do for you.

Keep smiling,

Dr. Chris

No More Messy Dental Impressions

Ideal Dentistry is proud to announce that we have added DIGITAL LASER IMPRESSIONS to our already state of the art facility.

Digital laser impressions eliminate the need for messy, goopy dental molds that none of us like. Our system, the 3Shape TRIOS3, is the premier Digital Impression System on the market and will allow us to not only make most of our procedures more comfortable but also quicker and more accurate.

Here is a list of some of the procedures we will use this new technology for:

  • Impressions for crowns
  • Impressions for inlays
  • Impressions for onlays
  • Impressions for Invisalign and Clearcorrect Invisible braces
  • Impressions for smile designs
  • Impressions for nightguards
  • Impressions for bleaching trays
  • and many more

Dr. Neal invests into new technology only when it is able to match or improve the current high level of care we stand for at Ideal Dentistry. This new digital impression system also allows us to speed up procedures – instead of waiting 3-4 weeks for a crown we can have many of them back within 3-5 days.

If you have been putting off dental treatment… fear no more. All treatment plans are now eligible for scans.

If you would like to see for yourself what a difference digital impressions can make, call our office today and schedule your appointment 502-228-4585

Keep Smiling.

Get to know your Dentist

Who is your Dentist? What are his or her philosophies? Do they have a passion for what they do?

Medicine, including Dentistry, goes beyond the scientific aspect of care – it is about people. Too often we get treated like a number, a problem, or a project, while in reality we are all human beings simply looking for help.

At Ideal Dentistry I focus on the person, not must the problem. I spend the time listening to you and making sure I am able to help. Getting to know who will be guiding you along your journey towards better oral health is now more important than ever! Poor quality dentistry has flooded the market and created more harm than good – many patients are treated different based on their insurance benefits and dentistry to many doctors has become a business, not a career.

I promise all my patients I only look out for their personal well being without being influenced by insurance or drug companies. This of course does not make me a favorite with insurance companies, dentists or drug companies, but that is ok! I am here to help and be your friend in the dental industry.

New ZOOM Whitening Experiment

Who does not want WHITER teeth? 

This is my personal before and after photo – I tested the new in-office ZOOM laser whitening procedure to make sure it does not create too much sensitivity and gets the results we expect at Ideal Dentistry.

I began the procedure after all patients had left and it took just about 1 hour. Here is how it works:

  1. Your teeth are polished to remove any plaque and stain that could prevent the bleaching product from reaching the tooth. It’s minty and tastes good.
  2. A unique cheek retractor appliance is placed to give the operator access to all the teeth and gums. This was comfortable and I liked that the appliance actually kept my tongue out of the way.
  3. The gums are painted with a protective layer of material so that none of the whitening gel would touch them. This also was quick and painless.
  4. Lastly the teeth are painted with the whitening gel and the laser is placed close to  your mouth and activated for 15 minutes. I literally nearly fell asleep a few times…
  5. After 15 minutes the gel is suctioned off and new gel is applied. This happens 3-4 times at 15 minute intervals. I did 3 but had literally ZERO sensitivity, and my teeth are so sensitive I can not eat cold fruit! I was impressed…which is hard to do.
  6. Last, everything in the mouth is removed – all the protective material on the gums. This was also no problem but the most challenging part – the material really does a good job protecting the gums!

Once everything is cleaned up you receive a tube of desensitizing gel in a tray that you wear for about 30 minutes. I did not feel I needed it but heck, it cannot hurt.

I am very happy with my results! Over the years I have used regular trays to whiten my teeth and it took forever and did cause me to have sensitive teeth. This new ZOOM procedure is amazing and we will offer it to our patients beginning next week!

If you would like awesome white teeth, call us today!

Keep smiling.

Do What You Do Best – I Make Beautiful Smiles

What difference does a beautiful smile make?

You tell me…do you think a person feels different with new smile?

The difference a beautiful smile makes is nothing short of life changing.

I came from the Cosmetic Center of the World, Los Angeles, and have the pleasure to serve Louisville as a Cosmetic Dentist now. I believe everyone deserves to have the confidence and self esteem a lovely smile exudes.

That being said, everybody is good at something. Some dentists do the best root canals, some the best dentures, some the best braces. I have a passion and a talent for Cosmetic Dentistry and that is all I focus on. You cannot be the best at everything! General Dentists in the area refer to me for Cosmetic Dentistry and I have not done a root canal treatment myself in 10 years. Why? Because there are other dentists that do them better and so I refer to them. We all need to find our talent, focus on it, build it and bring it to the World.

If you have considered enhancing your smile, consider doing it right the first time with a dentist that lives and breathes cosmetic dentist, not someone that dabbles in the field. Experience really does matter.

At Ideal Dentistry I serve my patients by providing only the finest, best quality care backed with years of experience and a personal touch. I do not compete with all the insurance driven dental practices around here but I do fix a lot of botched dentistry…

I hope to see you soon to give you a smile that changes your World.

Patient Guide To Getting A Good Fitting, Good Looking Crown

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The most common questions I receive on my blog are related to

patients not getting what they expect with respect to crowns/caps.

Here are the issues patients face:

  • Crowns that were placed without having the patient first approve the esthetics (ugly crowns)
  • Crowns that fit so poorly that they are adjust/ground down many times and eventually result in the tooth dying
  • Crowns that leave black edges at the gumline
  • Crowns that look and function more like mushrooms
  • Crowns that are sensitive
  • Crowns that result in root canal treatments

To help patients get what they deserve, which is a good looking, good fitting comfortable crown, I have put together a few essential steps for every patient that will result in getting the best possible crown that the dentist is able to provide.

BEFORE you see a Dentist

  1. What are YOUR expectations? In dentistry you will get what you pay for so if you have high aesthetic expectations for your dental crown then you need to select a dentist that is know for providing premium care, which pretty much means you need a fee-for-service dentist. Why is that? It is because insurance companies in the dental realm tie the dentists hands so tight that they are not able to charge the fees required to pay a top dental technician to provide a beautiful crown. Furthermore, time is money and quality dentistry requires that the dentist spends a lot of time making the tooth design perfect. Simply put, if you have high expectations then you need to be prepared to pay a little more. This is a body part! You will use this crown daily and it needs to last a looooong time, so why compromise on something this important?
  2. What is more important to you, function for aesthetics? Nothing beats a full gold crown but few people elect to use this option. I still put gold into my mouth 🙂

AT the Dental Office

  1. Clearly communicate your needs that you have established in #1 above. How picky are you…the dentist needs to know. One of the best things a dentist can do is turn down a case 🙂
  2. Make sure you feel comfortable with the personality and character of the dentist. You will work together on giving you a smile you will have for decades so there is no rushing or compromising in my opinion.
  3. Ask to see the ACTUAL before and after photos of cases the dentist has completed. Every dentist that has a passion for dentistry takes lots of photos! No photos is a deal breaker. Also, photos of other dentists work is even worse! If they show you a book that was written by someone else, that does not count. You don’t want to be an experiment.
  4. Make sure the dentist understand a few critical rules you will have:
    1. You want to see exactly what you will get in a provisional form
    2. You want to approve everything visually prior to final cementation
    3. You will pay 50% up front, 50% upon cementation
    4. You want to know who the lab/technician is that makes your work. This is critical. Every TOP dentist has a close relationship to a TOP lab, not a factory.

Now you are ready to get started!!!!

I hope this helps reduce the unhappy results many of you are talking to me about…

Keep Smiling,

Dr. Chris