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Services

Regular dental visits are essential to make sure oral health problems — from tooth decay to oral cancer — are detected and treated in a timely manner. At our office, your oral health is our paramount concern. We want to make sure your teeth stay healthy, function well and look great! West Coast Family Dentistry offers a full array of dental services to help you maintain healthy teeth. You can read more on this page about specific services.

Services we offer include:

Restorative Care: The generic term are fillings. When we see dental cavities, we are very conservative and will drill only those cavities that extend into the second layer of tooth structure called dentin. We will fill those cavities with the latest dental bonding and composite material to eliminate sensitivity and reduce wear. These fillings will have the best possible long term prognosis and success rate.

Endodontics : The other term are root canals, We provide root canals on all teeth including molars. We use the latest techniques to thoroughly clean and shape the canals of the tooth with rotary endodontics. These teeth are then filled with the standard gutta percha and one of the best root canal cements available. We have had great success with root canals and can expect a very high long term success rate. If we feel we can not provide that high long term success, we will recommend an evaluation by a specialist, an endodontist.

Teeth Whitening: We offer two types of teeth whitening, depending on your interest. The most common method of whitening with great final results is a take home system in which we make trays which are similar to a mouth guard and hold the whitening material next to the tooth for 30 minutes, once a day. We recommend whitening your teeth until you are satisfied with the shade, generally 7-10 days. This system also allows you to maintain the shade of your teeth by putting the trays in once a month. The other type of whitening offered is an in-office system which provides immediate whitening, up to 4 shades of improvement. If you are not happy with the shade of your teeth, please ask for a free evaluation at your next dental appointment.

Cosmetic Dentistry / Veneers: If you are not happy with the size, shape, or color of your teeth, please tell our hygienists or dentists at your next appointment. We will provide you a free evaluation and provide various treatment options to correcting the problem. These solutions could be as simple as re-contouring your teeth to porcelain veneers. Whatever your option, we will work hard to provide the best aesthetic final result and make you proud of your teeth.

TMJ Treatment: We are successful in treating about 80% of the those patients suffering from pain in the TMJ joint and surrounding muscles. We are very conservative in our treatment and focus on educating the patient on the condition and the treatment options. Our treatment is centered on detailed home care instructions, medications, and bruxism splints. Occasionally, we will refer to a physical therapist for those is extreme pain or do not improve with conventional treatment.

Crowns & Bridgework : Crown and bridge is our passion and strength at West Shore Family Dentistry. We have perfected our techniques from years of practice and provide a service that is extremely efficient with exceptional final results. Our crowns have a great long term success rate and will provide a good long term prognosis for your teeth. Quality, comfort, and great results will be your experience.

Extractions : We have extensive experience with extracting all teeth including wisdom teeth and full mouth extractions. We offer nitrous oxide and anti-anxiety medication to reduce the stress of the appointment. As we do not put patients asleep, we do refer to the local oral surgeons for the extremely apprehensive or the difficult cases. We usually schedule an evaluation before these procedures to discuss and determine the treatment required.

Dentures and Partials: We take great pride in making our dentures and partials, and as such, it generally takes from 3-6 appointments to fabricate a great fitting, good looking, and highly functional denture or partial. It is not easy to make a good denture or partial. We take the extra time required to do it right -  without skipping steps. We are also there for the lifetime of your prosthesis to make any adjustments or repairs.

Pediatric Dentistry : We treat children starting usually at the age of three. We do not sedate or put children asleep but rather attempt to work with the child taking the additional time required to perform the procedure. The bottom line is that we are patient and understanding. Sometimes though, we recommend a pediatric dentist for the extremely apprehensive or those with extensive work. For the majority though, we are extremely successful in our approach and stress prevention from an early age. Our hygienists do an excellent job educating and reviewing brushing, flossing. and diet. This consistent focus on our patients develops a lifetime of good oral hygiene and reduces the risk of dental cavities and dental problems.

Preventive Dentistry : We have an excellent team of dental hygienists and are very proud of their commitment to the patient to provide the best care. All hygienists have a different personality and we welcome you to find the hygienist you are most comfortable with. Our hygienists will review their hygiene concerns and provide brushing/flossing instructions as well as the use of other hygiene aids. We will also discuss your diet, overall health. and potential medications as they will influence the health of your mouth.

Periodontal : Periodontal Disease is a disease that occurs over many years in which the patient slowly loses the bone support around the teeth. The disease process is caused by many factors and we take a very conservative approach in out treatment. We start with a periodontal exam where we probe 6 regions of each tooth for pocket depth. These measurements serve as a baseline and a gauge for improvement after therapy. Initial therapy consists of scaling/root planing where we essentially do an extremely thorough cleaning, removing any calculus, tartar build up, and inflammatory tissue and detailed oral hygiene instructions. The gingival tissue usually responds favorable to treatment, and we place the patient on 3 month recall. If the conditions do not improve, we, then recommend referral to a periodontist which offer more options to include perio surgery.

Implant Dentistry : Implants are a great option to restore missing teeth. If you are missing teeth and would like to replace them with the most natural replacement, an implant would be your best option. We provide the initial consultation and work with local oral surgeons who place the implant in the bone. It usually requires 3-6 months for the implant to integrate into the bone. Once the implant is properly integrated, you would return to our office to place the tooth on the implant. We would start with impressions and 2 weeks later we would cement the tooth onto the implant, completing the process. Implants offer a great long term prognosis and we are there just in case you have any concerns / issues.

Sleep Apnea: We offer an option for the treatment of sleep apnea or snoring that involves fabrication of a dental appliance. The dental appliance brings the lower jaw forward and holds it in that position which prevents snoring and sleep apnea. We make several different appliance's and work with your medical doctors to insure everything is working correctly. If you suffer from these conditions and are interested in treating them with a dental appliance, the first step is to schedule a consultation appointment to discuss your options.

Emergency Care:

Our office is open 5 days a week and have time reserved each day for emergency care. We also have a dentist on call at all other times for our patients to handle any dental emergency. This service provides peace of mind in case you are that person. If you have a life-threatening or severe injury, call 911 or go directly to the nearest hospital emergency room. We can treat a variety of traumatic dental injuries, including teeth that have been chipped, moved, or knocked out entirely. Please call our office for assistance.