Grand Rapids, MI Dental Implants - Best Choice Dental Implant Center - Dr. Timothy Moore
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What Specialty Treatments are Provided by Prosthodontists?
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1. Smile design
2. Bleaching
3. Porcelain veneers
4. Crowns (gold, porcelain)
5. Complete dentures
6. Over dentures (some of your natural teeth are retained to support the denture and preserve the
bone)
7. Immediate transitional dentures (allows the denture to be placed the same day the teeth are
removed, so that you do not have to go through the embarrassment of having no teeth)
8. Metal base dentures (thinner denture bases that are stronger and conduct heat and cold better
than all plastic dentures).
9. Removable partial dentures (to replace a few missing teeth)
10. Fixed bridgework (replacement teeth that are cemented or bonded to your natural teeth)
11. Precision attachments (mechanical devices used to retain dentures and avoid the display of
unsightly metal hooks)
12. Implant supported crowns
13. Implant supported fixed bridgework
14. Implant supported removable dentures
15. Implant supported fixed dentures
16. Coordinating complex care involving other specialists
17. Restoration of mouths damaged by trauma
18. Restoration of mouths damaged by disease such as cancer
19. Restoration of mouths due to genetic problems such as missing teeth, mal-formed teeth and jaw
size discrepancies
Should I See a Prosthodontist?
Although a Prosthodontist is most valuable in the treatment and management of difficult or complex care, just about anyone could benefit from a thorough evaluation and long term treatment planning that Prosthodontists provide.
In our office, Dr. Moore will evaluate you for cancer, jaw joint (TMJ) problems, gum disease, tooth decay, occlusion (bite) problems, abnormal wear of your teeth, misalignment of teeth, missing teeth, lost function and esthetic and cosmetic problems. Once he has evaluated all this information, he will design a life-long treatment plan to help you keep your teeth and gums healthy for life.
My General Dentist Makes Crowns and Dentures. Why Should I See a Prosthodontist?
A great question!
You should see a Prosthodontist if:
1. You think you need more complex care than your general dentist is capable of providing.
2. Your dentist has said that they have done everything they can, and there is nothing else that can be
done to help you.
3. You are thinking about a “Cosmetic Make-Over”, “Extreme Make-Over” or “Smile Design” that not
only looks great; but is done on a solid foundation, so that it will function well and last for years with
minimal maintenance.
4. You think you look 10 or 15 years older than you are. You feel like your face is all “scrunched” up,
like your chin comes too close to your nose when you bite together.
5. Your lips have thinned out and the corners of your mouth appear to turn down (women may notice
that they don’t have as much “lip” to put lipstick on as they did five or ten years ago).
Prosthodontists call this being “over-closed”. This is often experienced by denture wearers who
have been wearing the same set of dentures for more than 10 years. It also presents itself in
patients who have severe wear of their teeth due to clenching and grinding (bruxism) or who have
chemical erosion of their teeth due to acid reflux disease or consuming frequent quantities of acidic
beverages such as carbonated soft drinks.
6. Your teeth are severely worn down.
7. You need more than a 3 or 4 unit bridge (a long span bridge replacing more than one or two missing
teeth).
8. You are interested in dental implants, but your general dentist does not restore implants.
9. You are missing some teeth and you ask about implants, but your dentist tells you that implants,
"don’t last', are "too expensive", "take too long" or "implants are experimental".
10. You need dentures, but your dentist only makes a few dentures a year.
11. You have been wearing dentures for many years, and your dentures move around. They skid,
slip or pinch and make your mouth sore.
12. You are an experienced denture wearer, and have had several sets of dentures over the last 15, 20
or 30 years. Each set of dentures seem to be worse than the one before, and your general dentist
says there is nothing else that they can offer you.
13. You have gum disease, and your dentist tells you that all of your teeth need to be extracted, and
you need dentures.
14. You think your teeth are OK; but you haven’t been to the dentist in awhile, and you want a good
exam and a life long care plan to help you keep your teeth and gums healthy for life.
What is the PDI ?
PDI stands for Prosthodontic Diagnostic Index. It was developed at the direction of the American College of Prosthodontists by a panel of Board Certified Prosthodontists over a period of several years.
The PDI is an important decision making tool for general dentists to help them determine when it is appropriate to refer their patients to a Prosthodontist. As Dr. Bill Dickerson of the Las Vegas Institute said, “You don’t know what you don’t know.”
Depending on the clinical problems a patient presents with, they are separated into four classes based on their clinical difficulty, and the knowledge, and experience the provider must possess in order to adequately treat the patient to a successful long term outcome.
Class I and Class II cases are less difficult and can be treated effectively by most general dentists. Class III and Class IV cases are more difficult to diagnose, and require more knowledge and experience to treat appropriately and to a successful outcome. Prosthodontists are experts at diagnosis and treatment planning. If the dentist cannot diagnose the problem completely and accurately, then they are not likely to treat the patient to a successful long term outcome. The American College of Prosthodontists recommends Class III and IV patients be treated by a trained Prosthodontist.
More information on the PDI is available at American College of Prosthodontists web site www.prosthodontics.org
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