The Douglas L Wirth DMD Blog

When Was Your Last Dental Cleaning?

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:38:53 +0000

You water the garden three times a week, you change your car’s oil every three months, and you replace the batteries in your smoke detectors once a year. Your teeth need to see your dentist on a regular schedule, too.

While daily oral hygiene habits are essential to good oral health, professional dental cleanings at our office ensure your teeth are treated to a deeper level of cleaning. We recommend for most of our patients to have a checkup at least every six months. In addition to a thorough cleaning and polishing of your teeth, these regular visits help us detect and prevent the onset of tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease. During your visit, we’ll check the health of your mouth, teeth, gums, cheeks, and tongue. We’ll also check old fillings and restorations, as these can wear away over time from constant chewing, grinding, or clenching.

If you are predisposed to oral diseases, you may need to visit our office more often than every six months. Factors at play in these diseases include age, pregnancy, tobacco use, medical conditions (such as diabetes, dry mouth, or HIV infection), along with how well you take care of your teeth on a daily basis.

Make sure your teeth get the professional attention they deserve – If you’re overdue for your next cleaning, check with our office to schedule an appointment!

Ask Dr. Wirth: “What should I expect during my first visit?”

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Mon, 07 May 2012 12:00:54 +0000

Thanks for the question. Your first visit typically includes an x-ray that allows us to view the structure of the jaw, the position of any teeth that have not yet erupted, malformed roots, and tooth decay.

The initial visit also involves getting your medical history. When you share your medical history with us, be sure to provide complete, up-to-date information on your health. Please let us know if you have experienced recent hospitalization or surgery, or if you have recently been ill. Also tell us the names, doses, and frequency of any medications you are taking — whether prescription or over-the-counter products — and the name of your physician. Please also let us know about any changes in your health or medications. This information will us select the most safe and effective method of treatment path for you.

Have any more questions about your first visit? Please give us a call!

May marks National Teen Self-Esteem Month, from Dr. Wirth

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Wed, 02 May 2012 19:58:36 +0000

At Dr. Wirth’s office, we know image is everything. May happens to be National Teen Self-Esteem Month, and during this time, parents are encouraged to act as positive role models, help stop negative self-images, and improve confidence and security among teenagers.

We know one of the great ways to improve your confidence is to improve your smile. And that begins with a visit to our Oak Harbor office. Has your child visited Dr. Wirth’s office in the past six months for his or her regular check-up? We invite you to give us a call to book your appointment!

See you soon!

Are you ready for a smile makeover? From Dr. Wirth

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:00:04 +0000

At Dr. Wirth’s office, we know your smile is one of your most important features. Dentistry is continuously evolving and with a variety of advanced treatment options, achieving a beautiful, healthy, aesthetic smile is made easy for patients of all ages.

If you’re considering cosmetic dental treatment, ask yourself a few simple questions:

Do you hesitate when you smile?
Would you like to increase your self-confidence?
Do you want to look your best in social or professional situations?
Are you ready to reverse any dental imperfections you may have?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, cosmetic dentistry may be the answer you’ve been looking for!

Dr. Wirth and our team will tell you cosmetic dentistry is an art and a science. Let us help you achieve your smile goals! Cosmetic dentistry is different from general dental care; it is both an art and science, and by providing cosmetic dental care, your dentist is able to offer smile enhancement, restoration, and maintenance treatments for optimal dental health. Using cutting-edge techniques and advanced materials, our office proudly offers you a beautiful, natural smile and all the benefits that come with it.

Feel more confident about your appearance with a new smile that is as beautiful as it is healthy. You no longer have to suffer from missing, chipped, discolored, or crooked teeth. Contact our Oa Harbor dental office today and schedule your smile makeover!

“What should I do if my child has a toothache?”

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:10:32 +0000

Toothaches occur when the nerve root of a tooth is irritated and can be caused by an infection, gum disease, decay (cavities), or injury. If your child complains of a toothache, rinse his or her mouth with warm water and inspect the teeth to be sure there is nothing caught between them. If pain continues, use a cold compress to ease the pain. Do not apply heat or any kind of aspirin or topical pain reliever directly to the affected area, as this can cause damage to the gums. Children’s pain relievers may be taken orally.

If the toothache persists, it is important to give us a call to determine the cause of the pain and provide relief. Immediate contact should be pursued if your child experiences:

• Pain that is not be relieved by over-the-counter drugs
• Severe pain after a tooth is pulled which may be dry socket syndrome
• Pain associated with swelling of the gums or face, or discharge around a tooth, especially if accompanied by a fever
• Broken or knocked-out teeth from an accident or injury

We hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions below or by giving us a call!

Spring is here! Do we have your current contact info?

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 17:50:42 +0000

Spring is in the air! As you probably know, you can always connect with us on our Facebook page, but we invite you to please contact our office with any updates to phone numbers and addresses, so that we may be able to reach you.
We also encourage you to call us and let us know if you have any new phone numbers or if your contact information has changed!
Thank you! Have a great week!

April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month, from Dr. Wirth

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 12:00:59 +0000

Visiting our office regularly will not only help keep your teeth and mouth healthy, but will also help keep the rest of your body healthy. The fact is, every hour of every day in the U.S., someone dies of oral cancer, which is the sixth-most common diagnosed form of the disease. The five-year survival rate is only 50 percent, and oral cancer is one of the few cancers whose survival rate has not improved. Since April is Oral Cancer Awareness Month, we would like to take this opportunity to remind all of our patients about the importance of maintaining good oral hygiene.

We are trained to diagnose, treat, and prevent oral health problems. Please let us now if you have any questions about your oral health during your next appointment. Take care of your teeth!

The Scoop on Dental X-rays

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 22:16:58 +0000

Dental X-rays are an essential and invaluable tool to help assist us in evaluating your oral health. With X-rays, we can see what’s happening beneath the surface of your teeth and gums and identify oral health issues otherwise hidden during a visual exam, including:

· small areas of decay between the teeth or below existing restorations (fillings)
· infections in the bone
· periodontal (gum) disease
· abscesses or cysts
· developmental abnormalities
· types of tumors

If left untreated, these problems can lead to expensive, time-consuming, and painful conditions, so it’s important to find and treat them early.

Dental X-rays are extremely safe, and our team is certified in the proper use of our digital X-ray equipment. The amount of radiation that you are exposed to from dental X-rays is very small compared to your daily exposure from things like atmospheric radiation and naturally-occurring radioactive elements, as well as medical X-rays you may have gotten at your doctor’s office or hospital. In fact our digital system dramatically decreases the already minimal amount of exposure even further. We try to be as conservative as possible when prescribing x-rays but do need them to see what is going on where our eyes can’t see.

When Was Your Last Dental Cleaning?

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 16:37:50 +0000

Make sure your teeth get the professional attention they deserve – If you’re overdue for your next cleaning, check with our office to schedule an appointment!

Connect with us on Facebook!

Douglas L. Wirth, D.M.D. — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 21:18:16 +0000

We will be rolling out our new Facebook Timeline page soon and would love for you to check it out! You’ll find all the useful information that was there before, but now in a fun, new layout. When you Like us on Facebook, you’ll be able to check out photos of our office, find out about new events and contests, or you can even leave a note about how much you enjoyed your visit at our office. We love hearing your feedback to make our practice serve you and your family even better. To make life even easier, if you “Like” us on Facebook, you’ll automatically receive updates from our office right on your own news feed!

See you on Facebook!