Today is National Toothache Day

by James Turner | Feb 9, 2022 | Dental Appointment, Dental Care, Dental Hygienist, Dental Office, Dentist, Oral Health, Uncategorized

A bit of a weird one. Celebrated every year on the same date, but who on earth would want to celebrate a toothache, I hear you ask?!

9th February marks the annual National Toothache Day. This seems to be a strange day to have, as why would anyone want to celebrate a toothache? The purpose of the day is to raise awareness of dental issues and promote good oral health to avoid toothache.

There can be many different causes of toothache and for yourself it could be very difficult to be able to tell what has caused the issue.

Here are some of the more common causes:

Food stuck between the gums which can cause gum or tooth pain

Dental decay or a cavity

Tooth abscess or infection

Cracked tooth

Infected gums

Trauma – such as a knock to a tooth or an accident/fall

Other illness such as a cold which gives tooth like pain

Sinusitis

If you are experiencing gum pain, it is advised to thoroughly brush your teeth along with inter-dental cleaning with floss or an inter dental brush to remove any food that may be stuck. Rinsing your mouth with warm salt water can help ease the pain.

Sometimes painkillers will be needed to help reduce pain. In the event of toothache, it is advisable to seek advice from your dentist and more urgently if you are having severe pain that is constant and painkillers may not be controlling or if you notice a swelling of your face or the inside of your mouth that may be a sign of an infection.

Original Article By: Awareness Days

Keywords: National Toothache Day, Dental Pain, Toothache, Remedies for Toothache, Remedy for toothache, Stop Toothache, Home remedies toothache, home remedies, tooth pain, toothache pain, toothache remedies, toothache home remedy, toothache relief

Dr. Mike Errico at Michael R. Errico, DDS, FICOI, FAGD, PC & Associates Dental Care are committed to offering you the best care, customer service and technologically advanced dental services available.

Contact Dr. Errico’s office for a dental appointment. We look forward to serving the dental needs of you and your family.

Benefits to using Dental Insurance Before End of the Year

by James Turner | Oct 12, 2021 | Dental Appointment, Dental Benefits, Dental Care, Dental Hygienist, Dental Insurance, Dental Office, Dentist, Oral Health

As we slowly move towards new year’s eve, we get so involved in Thanksgiving, Christmas we forget that our dental insurance plans lose all the benefits post-December 31 st. If you and your family haven’t scheduled a dental appointment yet, the end of the year is the ideal time to do so! If you have dental insurance, you should use it all by the end of the year to get the most value for the money. So don’t put it off any longer.

Make an appointment with Dr. Mike Errico in Rolling Meadows now, and our friendly staff will ensure that you get the most out of your dental insurance benefits!

Understand your Dental Coverage

If you have dental insurance, it likely covers preventive dental care twice a year, such as x-rays, dental cleanings, and oral exams, as well as other preventive treatments for children such as dental sealants and fluoride treatments.

Know your Dental Coverage and take advantage of these benefits before the year ends. So, make an appointment with Dr. Michael R. Errico in Rolling Meadows for you and your entire family. Don’t throw away your perks!

Prolonging Dental Problems Can Cost More

If you or a member of your family requires dental work, such as fillings or crowns, you should schedule an appointment before the end of the year.

Why? So, you can meet your deductible and get the most out of your annual benefits! The deductible on most dental insurance plans is from $250 to $500.

Once you’ve paid this amount for dental treatment in a year, your insurance plan will cover the balance of your care until you reach your yearly maximum, which is normally between $1,000 and $1500. These figures may differ depending on your plan.

This implies that once you’ve paid your deductible for the year, your dental procedures and those of your family will be covered by your insurance until you reach your annual maximum.

Keep Your Family Healthy & Happy During the Holiday Season!

With the overloaded excitement of Holidays and Festivals, please do not forget to keep you and your Family Healthy & Happy during the Holidays.

By coming in for an appointment now, you can make sure that you and your family get your teeth checked before this year-end festivities, and Dr. Mike Errico can make sure your teeth are strong and healthy for the new year.

Make an appointment with us today and don’t let your benefits go to waste!

The end of the year is an ideal time to schedule family dental treatment and maximize your dental benefits. So don’t put it off any longer. Do not hesitate to contact Dr. Errico‘s office in Rolling Meadows.

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Keywords: Dental Insurance, Dental Benefits, Dental Plans, Dental Coverage, Dental Preventive, Dental Annual Appointment, Dental Follow-up, Visit Dentist

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How Much Does Going to a Cosmetic Dentist Cost?

by James Turner | Aug 24, 2021 | Cosmetic Dentist, Cosmetic Dentistry, Dental Care, Dental Office, Dentist, Oral Health, Smile Makeover

Are you considering giving your smile a makeover?

Believe it or not, it’s one of the most popular makeovers you can get. 7 in 10 people living in the United States are reportedly self-conscious about their teeth.

You shouldn’t have to consider how your teeth look every time you smile. Instead, you should be so proud and happy with your teeth you couldn’t possibly stop smiling!

Does this sound like something you can relate to? If so, keep reading to learn the average cosmetic dentist cost, as well as the different types of cosmetic dentistry that you could benefit from.

What Is Cosmetic Dentistry?

First, let’s explore what cosmetic dentistry is so you can discover if it’s right for you. Cosmetic dentistry, also known as aesthetic dentistry, is any procedure carried out to improve your teeth or smile.

While cosmetic dentistry is often just focused on aesthetics, it can also improve the functionality of teeth and oral health.

If you’re curious if cosmetic dentistry is right for you, it’s important to first consult with a cosmetic dentist. If you have trouble with tooth enamel or gum disease, you may not qualify for specific procedures, and a cosmetic dentist can run you through all of your options.

Types of Cosmetic Dentistry

As you can most likely tell, there are tons of different types of cosmetic dentistry. Below, we will go through the most popular procedures and what their general costs come to.

Teeth Whitening

Among the most talked-about cosmetic dentistry procedures is teeth whitening. It is one of the least expensive and simplest ways to improve your smile, as tooth discoloration can severely impact your self-confidence.

You have many different options when it comes to teeth whitening as well, so it can always fit your budget. There is the option to get your teeth professionally whitened at your cosmetic dentist’s office.

You can also buy professional whitening gels and a mold from your dentist. Or, you can find over-the-counter products at retail stores, such as whitening toothpaste, white strips, and rinses.

Veneers

If you’re looking for a major smile makeover, you may be considering veneers. These are known as “Hollywood teeth” because there are virtually no imperfections.

Veneers are extremely thin shells that are custom-made to your teeth. They are made of tooth-colored porcelain or resin, which covers the front surface of your teeth.

To apply them, your dentist will remove about a half millimetre of the enamel from your tooth’s surface and then cement them to the front of your teeth.

This will change the color, shape, size, and length of your teeth, allowing you to get virtually whatever look you’re going for.

Bonding

The best cosmetic dentist will recommend dental bonding if you have decayed, cracked, or chipped teeth.

Dental bonding is the process of tooth-colored putty-like resin being applied to your tooth, then hardened and bonded by ultraviolet or laser light. Your dentist will then polish, shape, and trim it.

This is an excellent alternative to other fillings, such as silver or amalgam and takes approximately 30 – 60 minutes.

Crowns

Dental crowns, also known as caps, are used for severely cracked, weak, decayed, damaged, or discolored teeth. They fit over the entire tooth above the gum line, helping to restore its size, strength, shape, and overall appearance.

Crowns can help prevent a weak tooth from cracking and hold a cracked tooth together to prevent further damage.

They can be made from resin, metal, porcelain-infused-metal, or ceramic.

Implants

Dental implants are used to replace entire teeth, so if you are missing some teeth or need teeth pulled, this procedure may be for you.

Implants are titanium replacement tooth roots that are placed in the missing tooth’s bone socket. As your jawbone is healing, it will grow around the metal post, anchoring it and providing a solid base for a replacement tooth.

Braces

While some people require braces for health reasons, having straight teeth is desirable for aesthetic reasons as well.

If you have severely crooked teeth, you may be insecure regardless of how white and polished they are. You can choose between traditional metal wire braces, invisible braces, or ceramic braces.

Metal wire braces, ceramic braces, and invisible braces. Your cosmetic dentist will be able to help you decide which is best for you.

Gum Reshaping

Gum reshaping is a popular cosmetic dental procedure, as it is common for gums to be uneven or cover too much over teeth.

To fix this, using a laser scalpel, your dentist can cut back the gum tissue. This is a simple procedure.

Use This Guide to Calculate Your Cosmetic Dentist Cost

Upon reading this article, do you think cosmetic dentistry is right for you? Learning about the different procedures above can help you get more prepared for your visit to your local dentist.

After considering your cosmetic dentist cost, what outcome you’re looking for, and what is best for your health, you could be on your way to getting your dream smile.

If you found this article useful, please browse through more of our website today. We have many different articles that can help improve your appearance, lifestyle, and overall health!

Article Autor By Florida Times

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Back-to-School School Dental Examination Up Reminders

by James Turner | Jul 26, 2021 | Back to School Dental Appointment, Dental Appointment, Dental Care, Dental Hygienist, Dental Office, Dentist

The dentists and staff at DR. Michael R. Errico DDS, FAGD, FICOI, PC & Associates specialize in general, reconstructive, and cosmetic dentistry to provide our patients with comprehensive dental care to help them achieve and maintain beautiful, healthy smiles!

Now that we’re at end of July, it’s that time of the year once again when you and your school-aged kids begin to prepare for the upcoming school year. Our dentists and staff would like to remind parents to schedule those back-to-school dental appointments before the rush. A dental exam is just as important as booster shots and other routine physical examinations like hearing and vision tests that help ensure kids are in good health before school starts.

REGULAR CHECKUPS HELP KEEP DENTAL DECAY AT BAY

Statistics tell us that tooth decay affects American children more than any other chronic infectious disease and that approximately 20% of youngsters aged 2 to 19 have untreated tooth decay. Tooth decay can lead to pain and difficulty eating, speaking, and learning. If left untreated, tooth decay can also lead to tooth loss. The good news is that tooth decay is entirely preventable!

HOW TO PREVENT TOOTH DECAY

Tooth decay can be prevented by:

Brushing your teeth at least twice per day with a fluoride toothpaste
Flossing daily, preferably at bedtime
Eating nutritious, balanced meals and limit snacking
Seeing your dentist regularly for exams and professional cleanings

IMPORTANCE OF REGULAR CHECKUPS

Ideally, kids should see their dentist every 6 months for a cleaning and routine exam. These regular dental visits help keep the teeth and gums healthy. You can think of regular dental visits as continued maintenance which helps protect your child\’s smile rather than waiting until a problem arises. There are two main parts to a dental exam: The checkup where your dentist will check for any signs of trouble including cavities, plaque, and tartar, and the cleaning when your dentist will remove tartar using a process called scaling. Your dentist will then floss between your teeth and may even polish your teeth to remove any surface stains.

CONTACT YOUR NORTHWEST CHICAGOLAND DENTIST

Now is a great time to schedule those dental appointments for your kids before the school year begins. Just give us a call at (847) 788-0808 to set up an appointment time! We look forward to seeing you in our office soon! And of course, our Rolling Meadows, IL dentists, and staff would like to wish all our school-aged patients good luck in the upcoming academic year!

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Keywords: Dental Care, Dental Appointment, Back to School Dental Exam, Annual Dental Appointment, Children Dental Health Care

We’ve skipped lots of dental care during COVID-19. Now hygienists are having a wild time

by James Turner | Jun 29, 2021 | Covid19, Dental Appointment, Dental Care, Dental Hygienist, Dental Insurance, Dental Office, Dentist

Dental hygienist Jeannette Diaz’s patients sometimes cry. Lately, she’s been crying with them.

It’s not just because so many people refrained from getting dental work during much of the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving her to scrape off more than a year’s worth of tartar and plaque. It’s not just because the labor of cleaning teeth can take a toll on hygienists’ bodies.

It’s also because the patients are unburdening themselves on her — describing the tragedies and heartaches that have bombarded them during the pandemic. Many tell her how the coronavirus took their loved ones.

Dental hygienists “work in such close proximity and cover so many aspects of [a patient’s] life in going over their medical history that grief and loss and depression come up as a topic of conversation,” Diaz said.

The start of the pandemic brought dentistry nationwide to a near standstill. Now, with COVID-19 vaccines readily available and new coronavirus cases down significantly in the U.S., patients are clamoring for teeth cleanings.

In April 2020, overall patient volume at private dental practices nationwide plummeted to 7% of the pre-pandemic baseline, said Marko Vujicic, who oversees American Dental Assn.’s policy research activities. As of this month, volume is back up to 88%, Vujicic said.

Diaz, who has her own practice and travels to patients’ homes across Los Angeles and Orange counties, has been seeing that resurgence. She said that each weekend, she sees about six patients and has to reject about four additional people who call her wanting appointments.

Before the pandemic, Diaz said, she would see patients for about an hour each, but now her visits can last twice as long. That’s because of the condition of the teeth and because patients often grab the chance to talk to her about their troubles.

“It can be emotionally exhausting and draining when you hear about what they are experiencing mentally and emotionally that leads them to … be unable to care for their oral hygiene,” she said.

Diaz said she sympathizes with patients who were scared to seek dental care when the coronavirus was running rampant in California. But when looking into a neglected mouth, she becomes sad.

“I wish I would have been able to see them sooner,” she said.

Similar concerns weigh on Raiza Parada, a hygienist at a dental clinic in Long Beach.

“Just knowing that my patient’s health is on the line … and I couldn’t really do anything about it” while the patient postponed appointments. “That’s kind of emotionally hard on me,” she said.

A hiatus in oral care can have lasting consequences.

Patients “could be seeing … gum disease, bleeding gums — which potentially can lead to tooth loss,” said P.J. Attebery, a clinic coordinator with the Los Angeles County Comprehensive Health Center.

Germs left to multiply in the mouth can also spread and cause trouble in other parts of the body. According to the Mayo Clinic, endocarditis, cardiovascular disease, pneumonia, and pregnancy, and birth complications can be linked to oral health.

Cleaning those neglected mouths takes a heavier physical toll on hygienists too.

“The longer that the tartar … stays on the tooth surface, the more difficult it is to remove,” Parada said. “We have to strive to maintain good ergonomics and posture to prevent injury to our bodies, all while trying to clean teeth using sharp metal instruments in a very slippery environment while making the whole experience comfortable for patients.”

She said she’s been experiencing more pain in her neck, shoulders, upper back, and forearms. Cleaning the back teeth tends to be the hardest on her because that’s the area patients neglect most, she said.

Parada has offset some of the effects by doing strength training, getting massages, taking Epsom salt baths, and using a foam roller to loosen the muscles in her shoulders and upper back. But it’s not magic.

“I’ve never had pain like this in my whole career. I’ve been a licensed hygienist since 2012,” she said.

Wearing layers of personal protective equipment, along with the pressure to do more cleaning during a regular-length appointment, also taxes Parada. “Wearing the gown makes me hot and sweat more than I used to, and I feel dehydrated,” she said.

Diaz worked in difficult conditions even before the pandemic: She said the equipment she carries into and out of each patient’s house weighs 43 pounds, and that doesn’t include an ergonomic patient chair.

“I end up seeing [patients] in their bed, on their couch, on the recliner,” she said. “I have to bend and twist into weird positions.”

When a patient has a heavy buildup of tartar, Diaz has to apply extra pressure, exacerbating the strain on her own body.

Dental care has been the most neglected healthcare service during the pandemic, according to an American Dental Assn. survey of U.S. households conducted in May.

But if you have a long history of lackadaisical oral hygiene at home, your hygienist won’t necessarily believe the pandemic is behind your current tartar situation.

“I’m used to … people making excuses for not being able to floss, but it’s interesting how [now] people would tie their excuses to the pandemic,” Parada said. “The narrative changed.”

It doesn’t really matter why your teeth are the way they are, Parada said: Just show up.

“It’s very important for patients to know that it is safe to come back to the dental office to get their teeth cleaned,” she said.

Article By: ANDREW MENDEZ

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Odds of Catching COVID at Dentist’s Office Very Low: Study

by James Turner | May 17, 2021 | Covid19, Dental Appointment, Dental Care, Dental Office, Dentist

Do you need to have your teeth cleaned or a cavity filled?

Go ahead.

Dental treatment won’t put you at risk for contracting COVID-19, a new study affirms.

“Getting your teeth cleaned does not increase your risk for COVID-19 infection any more than drinking a glass of water from the dentist’s office does,” said lead author Purnima Kumar, a professor of periodontology at Ohio State University in Columbus.

Because COVID-19 spreads mostly by airborne droplets, fears have persisted throughout the pandemic that saliva released during a dental procedure could spread the virus.

For the study, Kumar’s team analyzed the genetic makeup of organisms found in air samples during a range of dental procedures.

The takeaway: Water solution from irrigation tools — not saliva — was the main source of any bacteria or viruses in the spatter and spurts from patients’ mouths.

Even when low levels of the SARS-CoV-2 virus were found in the saliva of asymptomatic patients, the aerosols generated during their dental work showed no signs of the coronavirus, the research found.

“These findings should help us open up our practices, make ourselves feel safe about our environment and, for patients, get their oral and dental problems treated — there is so much evidence emerging that if you have poor oral health, you are more susceptible to COVID,” Kumar said in a university news release.

“Hopefully this will set their mind at rest because when you do procedures, it is the water from the ultrasonic equipment that’s causing bacteria to be there. It’s not saliva. So the risk of spreading infection is not high,” Kumar said. “However, we should not lose sight of the fact that this virus spreads through aerosol, and speaking, coughing or sneezing in the dental office can still carry a high risk of disease transmission.”

The findings were published May 12 in the Journal of Dental Research.

More information

For more on COVID-19, head to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

SOURCE: Ohio State University, news release, May 12, 2021

Credit: Steven Reinberg @ HealthDay Reporter

https://consumer.healthday.com/b-5-17-odds-of-catching-covid-at-dentists-office-very-low-study-2652974019.html

Keywords: COVID-19 Spreads, Airborne Droplets, Dental Treatment, Dental Work, Dental Procedure, Dental Care, Dentist, Dentistry

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