What Is Plaque?

Nearly everybody has some plaque in their mouth at any given time. Plaque forms over teeth between your twice-daily brushing and is soft and sticky. It can take as little as eight hours to form. It forms on teeth and most notably around the gum line. Plaque is composed of bacteria that includes particles from food and your own saliva.

Luckily for patients, plaque is easily removed with proper brushing and flossing. Regular dental checkups are also important because there are places plaque can hide, especially if you have overcrowded or misaligned teeth. If plaque isn’t removed on a regular basis via your daily brushing, it can damage your teeth and gums and eventually turn into tartar.

What Is Tartar?

Tartar is a hard substance that forms from plaque that’s left to build up on your teeth. It has a hard appearance and is generally obvious once it forms due to its color (which can range from yellow to brown). Plaque can progress to tartar over time, and tartar can grow in your mouth if nothing is done about it.

Once tartar forms, it can only be removed by a professional oral health care specialist such as your local dentist. Since tartar is very hard and porous, trying to remove it yourself will cause more damage than good. If not removed, tartar can lead to tooth decay and gum disease and eventually tooth loss.

Your dentist will carefully remove the tartar with special instruments and perform a deep cleaning which includes your gums. Sometimes tartar can form below your gums, in which case surgery would be needed to properly remove and treat the tartar.

How to Avoid Buildup of Plaque That Leads to Formation of Tartar

Plaque is common and is a daily occurrence in most patients, depending on how often they brush and their brushing skills. Regular checkups can also help your dentist determine problem areas in your mouth, such as where plaque easily forms and what you can do about it.

To avoid plaque formation, simply brush twice a day and floss once a day. It’s that easy! Hard brushing isn’t needed and can actually cause further damage to your enamel. It doesn’t take a lot of force to remove plaque—gentle brushing with a quality toothbrush will do the trick. Flossing once a day can help remove plaque in places that your toothbrush can’t reach!

If you already have tartar forming on your teeth or suspect you have tartar, don’t ignore it! The tartar can and will get worse if not removed professionally. Schedule an appointment with your dentist to remove the tartar. Your dentist can help you adopt healthy practices that will lead to a healthy smile for life!

Image courtesy of Fotographic1980 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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What Is TMJ?

TMJ is short for temporomandibular joint. This is the joint that is used when we speak and chew. TMJ disorders are a broad range of conditions that affect a person’s ability to open and close their mouth. While many problems can contribute to TMJ disorder, one of the most common is a crooked bite.

What Are the Symptoms of TMJ?

When a person is experiencing a TMJ disorder, many symptoms occur. These include:

– Sound when chewing or speaking

– Pain

– Popping

– Clicking

– Grinding

– The joint itself

– Surrounding face muscles

– Neck

– Difficulty chewing

– Jaw fatigue

– Loss of range of jaw motion

– Grinding teeth

As the condition progresses, other symptoms can appear. For example, grinding may wear teeth unnaturally and result in damage to the teeth. Other long-term TMJ disorder symptoms may be vertigo, tinnitus, ear pain, light sensitivity, and back pain. It is, therefore, important to have a TMJ disorder checked out by a professional, even if you feel you can live with it.

How Can TMJ Dentistry Help Me?

TMJ disorder treatment begins with a thorough examination to determine the cause of the problem. Again, this often goes back to an abnormality in a person’s bite. Because of this, the primary treatment involves correcting the issue with a person’s bite.

Depending on the degree of a person’s TMJ disorder, several forms of treatment may be recommended:

Mouth Guard (or dental splint) – Because a person with TMJ may grind their teeth, a custom fit mouth guard can protect the teeth from unusual wear. While this does not correct the underlying issue, it is an inexpensive way to prevent further damage to the mouth.

Orthodontics – Sometimes, misaligned teeth can cause a person’s bite to be off. If this is the case, orthodontics may be able to correct the issue.

Bite Correction Appliances – In some cases, a person’s bite can be realigned without orthodontics. Specially fit appliances decompress the joint by forcing a person to bite correctly and keeping the tongue properly positioned. Such a device is worn overnight and at times during the day and is used long-term until the pain stops.

TMJ Arthroscopy – In certain situations, a dentist may deem it necessary to perform a minimally-invasive procedure to correct the alignment of the patient’s jaw. It is an outpatient procedure with about a week of recovery time.

Pain Relief – If a patient is in severe pain, NSAIDs, such as ibuprofen, may be prescribed to reduce swelling while the condition is being treated.

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