Category: General Dentistry

Questions to Ask Your Travelers Rest Dentist

Posted April 21, 2023 by Paris Mountain Dental

Maybe you’re new to Travelers Rest (if so, welcome!) or maybe you just haven’t visited a dental office in a while. Whatever the case may be, it’s possible you feel a little unsure about what to ask your dentist at your upcoming appointment. There’s no need to stress! It’s not a test that you need to come prepared for. Your dental team will guide you through the process and be happy to answer any questions you have.

Here are a few questions that you might find helpful to ask your Travelers Rest dentist the next time you see them:

How Can I Improve My Oral Health?

Your dental team can offer up some personalized tips to make your oral health habits even better. If they don’t tell you already, ask them how you can improve your oral health based on what they find during your cleaning and checkup. They may give you pointers on flossing technique or point out specific areas of your mouth you should focus more on while brushing. You could even ask them for specific toothpaste or toothbrush recommendations.

I Am Having a Dental Issue… How Can I Fix It?

Whether you’re experiencing some sort of dental pain or there’s an aesthetic issue that annoys you everytime you see pictures or reflections of your smile, your Travelers Rest dentist can help. Let them know what you’d like to improve or change, and they can recommend some treatments to you based on their suite of dental services.

What Are My Payment Options?

Before going to a dentist for the first time, check what kind of financial options they have. You’ll find that different dental practices accept various kinds of payment methods. Your dental team should be happy to help you figure out which payment method works the best for your specific budget.

Come Visit Us!

If you’re still looking for a dentist in Travelers Rest, we invite you to check out Paris Mountain Dental. We’d be delighted to welcome your whole family into our practice and to care for your smile throughout the years.

Are You Overdue for a Dental Cleaning?

Posted February 10, 2022 by Paris Mountain Dental

Cartoon of a lady at the dentist for a dental hygiene cleaning.

Image by Authority Dental under CC 2.0

Did you know that your smile needs regular dental cleanings to stay in tip-top shape? In addition to cleaning your teeth at home, professional cleanings are a necessity for a healthy smile. Keep reading to learn more about dental cleanings!

How Do I Know When I Need a Dental Cleaning?

The American Dental Association states that adults and kids should get a professional dental cleaning twice a year. Even if you follow a strict at-home oral hygiene regimen, it’s not uncommon to miss the hard-to-reach areas in your mouth. Professional cleanings give your dentist and hygienist a chance to thoroughly clean every inch of your teeth and gums. It also allows them to check for any dental issues and catch them while they’re still small.

What Is a Professional Dental Cleaning?

Dental cleanings are professional-grade cleanings performed by trained dental hygienists. They are a more thorough cleaning treatment that is geared towards removing plaque and tartar buildup. Hygienists utilize special dental tools to scrape off hardened tartar without damaging the teeth. Then, they use a gritty paste and an electric brush to perform a deep cleaning. This is followed by water flossing to remove any trapped particles and debris. After the teeth and gums are completely clean, hygienists will use a polishing paste to make the teeth shine. If needed, fluoride treatments are applied at the end of a dental cleaning. Fluoride helps remineralize weakened enamel to strengthen teeth. Fluoride treatments can be applied by biting into a foam tray or painting the fluoride varnish directly onto the teeth.

Overdue For Your Dental Cleaning?

Have you put off your next dental cleaning? Don’t wait any longer! At Paris Mountain Dental in Travelers Rest, SC, we have extensive experience performing thorough deep cleanings. We’re dedicated to helping our community achieve and maintain a lifetime of great oral health. Please contact our office to schedule your cleaning!

Dental cleanings provide great preventive dental care!

Prevention Saves Money in the Long Run

Posted September 14, 2021 by Paris Mountain Dental

Staying on top of your oral health can have a positive impact on your smile and your wallet! Preventive dentistry is the key to preventing cavities and avoiding more costly dental issues down the road. Here’s what you need to know about preventive dental care and how it can benefit you!

The Importance of Preventive Dentistry

Preventive dentistry is the foundation for a healthy smile. Preventive care includes dental cleanings and examinations as well as at-home oral hygiene regimens. With biannual cleanings and exams, your dental team can thoroughly clean your teeth and gums by removing any plaque and tartar buildup that you may have missed when brushing your teeth at home. After your cleaning, your dentist will examine your mouth to ensure you don’t have any signs of dental issues, such as cavities. In addition to regular dental visits, you should also maintain a strong at-home oral hygiene routine by brushing twice a day for two minutes each and flossing daily.

Extra Prevention for Kids

Teaching kids good dental hygiene habits will set them up for success maintaining a healthy smile as an adult. Dental sealants and fluoride treatments are two procedures we offer in the office that are especially effective preventive treatments for kids.

Don’t Leave Dental Issues Untreated

If you have any dental concerns, please don’t push them by the wayside! The sooner you seek treatment, the better. If an issue arises in between your biannual visits, contact your dentist right away. When small problems are left untreated, they can turn into more complex and costly dental issues in the long run. If you are experiencing any of the following dental issues, please call Paris Mountain Dental right away.

Bleeding, Sensitive Gums

Chronic & Throbbing Toothache

Sensitivity to Hot & Cold

Sudden Tooth Discoloration

Protection Is Part of Prevention

Preventive dentistry also includes preventing damage to teeth when possible. This means that the athletes in your family should wear an athletic mouthguard when participating in contact sports. The cost of a custom-fitted mouthguard is negligible when compared to the cost of replacing a knocked-out tooth.

Looking For a Dental Home in Travelers Rest, SC?

Finding a good dental home can help you prevent tooth decay and keep your smile healthy. At Paris Mountain Dental, we are passionate about helping patients of all ages achieve and maintain great oral health! We understand that taking care of your smile is a big responsibility and we’re ready and equipped to assist you along your dental health journey. Please contact us to book your consultation!

Regular preventive care will save you money in the long run!

Chronic Diseases & Dental Health

Posted April 12, 2021 by Paris Mountain Dental

Cartoon of a white haired woman in the dental chair for a preventive exam & hygiene cleaning.

Image by Authority Dental under CC 2.0

Chronic diseases can have an impact on your dental health. Fifty percent of people have a chronic condition and 25% of adults have two or more, according to The National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. It’s essential to let your dentist know if you have a chronic disease. Read on for a couple of the conditions that Dr. Ghimire and the Paris Mountain Dental team will want to know about to better care for you when you visit our Travelers Rest office.

Diabetes

Diabetes doesn’t just affect your blood sugar. People with diabetes are more likely to develop dental issues like gum disease, cavities, and tooth loss. It also may take longer for mouth infections to heal. The good news is that taking care of your oral health can improve diabetes control. You should let your dentist know if you are diabetic and when was the last time you took insulin.

High Blood Pressure

Chronic high blood pressure can have an impact on your dental health. Medication to control your blood pressure could have a side effect of gingival enlargement. This is where your gums swell and grow over your teeth. Even if you don’t experience this side effect, you’ll still want to let your dentist know if you have high blood pressure. Local anesthesia or numbing cream could potentially raise your blood pressure therefore it’s important to keep Dr. Ghimire informed about your condition and medications.

Cardiovascular Disease

If you have heart disease it might be necessary to take antibiotics before some dental procedures to protect your heart from potential bacterial infections. Additionally, heart medications can impact your oral health so it’s always important to let your dentist know what type of prescriptions you are using.

How Can You Protect Your Oral Health?

Regardless of any chronic disease, you can save yourself from future dental health problems by taking care of your teeth. Everyone benefits from a proper dental hygiene routine. Here are a few tasks that should be part of your daily hygiene routine.

Brush your teeth twice a day for two minutes

Use a soft-bristled toothbrush with fluoride toothpaste

Floss daily

Use mouthwash after brushing and flossing

Schedule regular dental checkups

Avoid using tobacco products

Comprehensive Services at Paris Mountain Dental

Patients of all ages receive quality dental care at Paris Mountain Dental. Our hardworking and caring team can help with a variety of dental issues. Please give us a call to schedule an appointment. We look forward to taking care of your smile.

Protect your oral health with a good hygiene routine!

What Causes Dry Mouth?

Posted January 14, 2019 by Paris Mountain Dental

When your saliva production is low, the result is an uncomfortably dry mouth. Many of us may experience occasional dry mouth when we’re nervous, like before public speaking. While occasional bouts of dry mouth are no cause for concern, chronic dry mouth can damage your teeth and negatively affect your health.

Why Is Saliva Important?

Although saliva is often overlooked, it plays an incredibly important role in your oral health. Your saliva washes away food particles and debris from teeth before oral bacteria has a chance to feed on them. Saliva also contains an enzyme that not only begins breaking down food, it also breaks down the bad, cavity-causing bacteria in your mouth. When your saliva production is low, you are at an increased risk for developing cavities. Adding insult to injury, dry mouth can also be responsible for bad breath.

What Causes Dry Mouth?

There are many different causes for dry mouth. Many common medications list dry mouth as one of their side effects. Smoking is also notorious for causing dry mouth. In other situations, dry mouth may simply be a sign that you are not drinking enough water throughout the day or that you have a vitamin deficiency. Rarely, dry mouth is a sign of a serious medical condition.

How Do We Treat Dry Mouth?

If you frequently experience uncomfortable dry mouth, let us know. To treat dry mouth, our team at Paris Mountain Dental will first try to determine the cause. Occasionally, the fix is simply asking your doctor for an alternative medication. Other times, we may recommend that you use a mouth spray to simulate saliva production and avoid some of the problems associated with dry mouth.

To ask our team any questions about treating dry mouth or to schedule your visit to our office, contact us today!

How Can I Fix Calcium Spots on My Teeth?

Posted December 17, 2018 by Paris Mountain Dental

As you age, you may notice white spots on your teeth. If these white spots are causing you to hide your smile, it’s time to take action. Our team at Paris Mountain Dental can help treat these white spots and restore your smile. Today, we want to talk about some of the causes for white spots on teeth along with treatment options.

blond woman looking up at question marks pondering.

What Causes White Spots?

There are two common culprits for white spots on teeth: dental fluorosis and calcium deposits. Dental fluorosis occurs when people ingest too much fluoride as children. This condition is usually harmless and develops before teeth break through the gums. Calcium deposits, on the other hand, develop in adulthood.

Calcium Deposits

Calcium deposits occur when the calcium phosphate in your saliva sticks to plaque on your teeth. Plaque is a sticky biofilm composed of bacteria in your mouth that feed on sugar and starches. Without proper care, calcium phosphate can harden into tartar. Not only does tartar attract even more bacteria and plaque, tartar is an irritant that can lead to tooth decay, gum disease, and other issues.

How Do We Treat Calcium Spots?

Unlike plaque, tartar cannot be removed by brushing. The only way to remove tartar is through a professional cleaning at our office. Our team will use special tools to remove tartar both above and below your gum line. If the tartar buildup is more severe, we many recommend root planing and scaling, a deep cleaning treatment that involves cleaning the root surfaces of your teeth and removing all tartar.

Restoring the Appearance of Your Teeth

Once white spots on your teeth are a thing of the past, you may want to take advantage of our professional whitening services to get that bright, white smile you’ve always wanted. To ask our team any questions about white spots on your teeth or to schedule your next appointment, contact our office today!

Get a whiter smile at Paris Mountain Dental!

The History of Dentistry

Posted November 13, 2018 by Paris Mountain Dental

Dentistry is one of the oldest medical professions, but like other medical professions, it was very primitive until relatively recently. In this article, we offer a brief summary of dentistry’s history, which we hope you’ll find both educational and entertaining.

Primitive Dentistry

Archaeological evidence suggests that humans have been trying to fix bad teeth since at least 7000 B.C. Unfortunately, their contributions to dentistry were largely worthless. The famous Greek philosopher Aristotle, for example, believed that women had fewer teeth than men. Although he was married twice, he apparently never bothered to count the teeth of his wives, because he would have quickly learned that he was wrong. And the ancient Sumerians theorized that tooth decay was caused by tooth worms. Although their theory was totally wrong, it was generally accepted as fact until the 1700s.

The Birth of Modern Dentistry

The French surgeon Pierre Fauchard almost single-handedly invented the modern dentistry profession in 1723 when he published his book “The Surgeon Dentist,” which defined a comprehensive system for caring for and treating teeth.

Fauchard is also credited with being the first person to figure out that tooth decay is caused by acids from sugar instead of worms. He also pioneered the use of dental fillings, and was the first dentist to keep dentures in place by anchoring them to molars—a technique that provided the foundation for modern braces.

Dentistry in the USA

The Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, established in 1840, was the first dental college in the United States. Harvard University Dental School, founded in 1867, was the first university-affiliated dental institution. The dental profession’s first official organization, the American Dental Association, was formed in 1859.

In the marketplace, Colgate introduced the first commercial toothpaste in the 1870s, and mass-produced toothbrushes appeared soon thereafter. The first fluoride toothpaste appeared in 1955, when Procter & Gamble introduced its Crest brand, and fluoridated toothpaste has been the industry standard ever since.

And of course Paris Mountain Dental contributes to the history of dentistry by providing the highest quality of treatment and personalized care. If you have any dental issues, or if you’re just overdue for a checkup, be sure to contact us and set up an appointment today!

We look forward to hearing from you!

Save Your Existing Teeth with Our Root Canal Services

Posted October 12, 2018 by Paris Mountain Dental

Let us take a guess: When you hear the phrase “root canal,” your first thoughts are probably something to do with pain, right? At least, that seems to be the case for many people. The problem is, that doesn’t actually reflect root canal treatment! A common belief is that a root canal is the worst thing you could possibly get done at the dentist when in reality it’s a routine, effective way to save you from tooth pain—and from losing the tooth itself.

Root Canal Treatment vs. the Alternative

When you avoid necessary root canal treatment, you’re only setting yourself up for more pain and hassle in the future. A root canal is necessary when the inside of your tooth known as the pulp becomes infected. If you don’t get that infection cleaned out, it can spread further and further down your tooth and into your jaw. That means your likelihood of experiencing an abscess, swelling, pain, and sensitivity all increase. All of which we don’t think you want to deal with!

If you wait too long to address the infection, then there comes a point where your tooth can’t be saved anymore, which means you need to have it removed. Keeping your natural tooth is always a preferable choice since you won’t have to deal with a gap in your smile or pursue further (and more costly) dental work to get a replacement tooth. Don’t let your tooth deteriorate past the point of repair when you can save your beautiful, natural smile!

Stress-Free Sedation Options

You may be convinced that root canal treatment is right for you but still remain a little worried about how it’ll feel. Let us ease your concern! Modern root canal services involve using local anesthesia and dental sedation options so that patients don’t have to experience discomfort during the treatment.

Paris Mountain Dental, for example, has nitrous oxide available to help nervous and anxious patients feel completely calm during their procedure. We also have topical anesthesia and DentalVibe^®, which significantly minimizes pain during injections.

If you need a root canal, or need help deciding if one is necessary for you, we welcome you at our Travelers Rest dental office. We perform gentle root canal therapy to help you get back on track with your oral health. Contact us to schedule a consultation.

Do you need root canal therapy or have questions about how much a dental procedure will cost?

How to Teach Kids About Good Oral Hygiene

Posted September 13, 2018 by Paris Mountain Dental

Good oral hygiene habits should begin before adult teeth come in, and even before children start to lose their baby teeth. As your one-stop dental practice for the whole family, all of us at Paris Mountain Dental are excited to share the importance of teaching kids good oral hygiene habits.

Why You Should Teach Your Kids About Oral Hygiene

We tell our kids to eat their fruits and veggies because these foods include important vitamins and minerals to help them grow up to be healthy and strong. In that same sense, that is also why we should all strive to teach our children about good oral hygiene, so that their smiles grow up healthy, strong, and bright too!

Why Are Baby Teeth Important If They Fall Out Eventually?

Baby teeth serve an important role in children’s growth and overall well-being. Without baby teeth, children wouldn’t be able to smile, chew, properly bite down. Baby teeth also play an important role in how the adult teeth will erupt. If a child loses baby teeth too early, the adult teeth might erupt too soon, making it difficult for the surrounding teeth to find space to come in, which can lead to crooked and/or crowded teeth.

3 Tips to Make Good Oral Hygiene Fun for Kids

1. Brush Your Teeth Together

You know what they say—monkey see, monkey do! Showing your children that you make a habit of brushing your teeth carefully and regularly helps show them how important it is.

2. Make It Special With a Unique Toothbrush

You can help keep children interested in brushing their teeth by using a fun, colorful toothbrush or one that features their favorite cartoon character!

3. Make the Time Count

Duration is extremely important when brushing teeth, so it’s a good idea to get kids used to brushing for a full two minutes. There are lots of tooth brushing songs on YouTube. The ADA even made a curated list of several songs with some familiar characters.

Just as parents need to visit our team at Paris Mountain Dental twice a year, so do children. Our office is equipped with a kids’ play area to help children stay comfortable during their visits and our friendly team knows how important it is to be fun and friendly. We never want our young patients to fear the dentist so we do everything we can to make their dental checkups fun!

Have your children been to visit us at Paris Mountain Dental in the last six months? If it’s been a little longer, don’t wait.

Is It Possible to Never Get a Cavity?

Posted February 19, 2018 by Paris Mountain Dental

There are a variety of factors that determine whether you get a cavity or not. From genetics to diet to your dental care habits, a multitude of variables can cause cavities. Cavities need to be treated as soon as possible as they can result in dangerous infections and even tooth loss.

Cavities are one of the most common dental ailments, but is it possible to never get cavities? It turns out, it is. About 92% of adults have experienced a cavity, but the other 8% have not! Today, let’s talk about what causes cavities and why some lucky folks never get them.

What Causes Cavities?

At any given time, your mouth is full of bacteria. Most of the bacteria in your mouth is good and helps you digest food, fight disease, and keep your mouth clean. However, some of the bacteria in your mouth feed on sugars and starches, creating a harmful acid. This acid, combined with other bacteria, food debris, and saliva form plaque and wear down tooth enamel (the hard, protective outer coating of your teeth). The holes created by the acid are called cavities. Left untreated, cavities can result in tooth decay, infection and even tooth loss.

How Can You Prevent Cavities?

Some people have a natural advantage in the fight against cavities. Scientists have determined that some people just don’t have the type of bacteria that causes cavities. For the rest of us, there are many steps you can take to reduce the chance of getting a cavity. Limit your intake of sugary, starchy foods that give bacteria something to feed on. Also, make sure you’re brushing your teeth twice a day and flossing every day to clean away food particles.

If you are worried you might have a cavity or have any questions about cavities, contact our office and one of our knowledgeable team members would be happy to speak with you or help you schedule an appointment.

Do you have questions about proper oral care?

We Have Answers!