Our Services
At Welker Dental, your oral health is our number one concern.
We want to make sure your teeth stay healthy, function well and look great! From regular cleanings and exams to advanced restorative treatments, we can meet all of your routine dental needs.
Bonding
Bonding is one of the easiest and least expensive ways to restore broken or decayed teeth to full beauty and function.
Bonding uses tooth-colored materials, or composite resins, to replace missing tooth structure or hide cosmetically unappealing minor defects in a tooth like chips, discoloration, or minor spacing irregularities. Composite resins come in a variety of tooth shades for truly lifelike results. Tooth bonding can usually be accomplished in a single visit to the dental office as it does not involve dental laboratory work.
Bonded teeth should be brushed and flossed daily, and professionally cleaned at the dental office twice per year, just like the rest of your teeth. With proper care, a bonded tooth should stay beautiful for three to 10 years.
Crowns & Bridgework
Crowns & Bridgework allow us to replace large amounts of lost tooth structure and/or missing teeth.
A dental crown is a covering that fits over a damaged, decayed or unattractive tooth or replaces a tooth entirely as part of dental bridgework. Crowns and bridgework strengthen damaged teeth, allowing them to function normally again. Crowns and bridgework can be made of many materials including high-tech porcelains or cast gold. We are happy to discuss the pros and cons of the different options with you.
Crowns and bridgework require the same care as your natural teeth, including daily brushing and flossing and regular cleanings at the dental office.
Dental Implants
Dental Implants give you a long-lasting tooth replacement and help preserve tooth-supporting bone that naturally deteriorates when a tooth is lost.
A dental implant usually takes the form of a small, screw-shaped titanium post that is inserted directly into the jawbone, replacing the root-part of a missing tooth. Dental implants have a documented success rate of over 95%, which is significantly higher than any other tooth-replacement option.
A minor, routine surgical procedure is necessary to place a dental implant, requiring only local anesthesia in most cases. While healing, the dental implant fuses to the bone surrounding it, then the dental implant is topped with a lifelike crown custom made to match your existing natural teeth.
Regular daily tooth brushing and flossing, along with regular professional cleanings, help to keep your dental implants bright and healthy. Dental implants are a long-term investment in your smile, your health and your well-being, so it's best to protect your investment.
Fillings
Fillings do just what the name implies — seal a small hole in your tooth caused by decay - a cavity.
Fillings prevent decay, a bacteria-induced infection, from spreading further into your tooth and, if left untreated, from continuing on to the sensitive inner pulp, or nerve tissue, located in the root canal. There are two broad categories of dental fillings: metal fillings and tooth-colored fillings. We’re happy to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each type of filling and how they can best meet your needs.
After getting a filling, continue daily brushing and flossing and visit the dental office at least twice per year for your regular checkups and cleanings. Remember, tooth decay is a very preventable disease; with good oral hygiene and professional care, you can make your most recent cavity your last!
Oral Cancer Screenings
Oral Cancer Screenings are a simple test that can give you an early warning about whether you're likely to have this disease.
In the United States, oral cancer is responsible for killing one person every hour, every day. While it accounts for a relatively small percentage of all cancers, oral cancer is dangerous because it isn't usually detected until it has reached an advanced stage. At that point, the odds aren't great: only about 6 in 10 people will survive after five years of treatment.
An oral cancer screening is fast and painless. Its objective is to identify small changes in the lining tissues of the mouth, lips and tongue that may signify the early stages of this type of cancer. The oral cancer screening is primarily a visual and tactile (touch) examination. If any abnormalities are noted, a small tissue sample can be retrieved for further testing in a laboratory.
Since early detection has been shown to increase the survival rate of oral cancer to 80% or better, oral cancer screenings can truly save lives. And best of all, having an oral cancer screening is part of something you should be doing anyway: getting regular dental checkups.
Periodontal (Gum) Disease Therapy
Periodontal (Gum) Disease Therapy helps restore diseased tissues to health and prevent tooth loss.
Good oral hygiene and regular professional cleanings and oral examinations help us keep our natural teeth for life. That involves not only caring for the teeth themselves, but also the structures that surround them: the gums and tooth-supporting bone.
Gum disease, or periodontal disease, is a bacterial infection that threatens these supporting tissues. Periodontal disease can spread from the gums to the bone that supports the teeth, and may even cause tooth loss in the most severe cases.
Effective periodontal disease therapy includes both surgical and non-surgical techniques to restore health to the tissues that support and prevent tooth loss. Dental plaque is the main cause of periodontal disease, so it's essential to remove it every day with effective brushing and flossing and through regular professional cleanings at the dental office. Your regular dental exam is also a time when early signs of gum disease can be detected — before they become apparent even to you.
Porcelain Veneers
Porcelain Veneers help repair large chips and cracks, and can reshape teeth.
A beautiful smile is made up of a lot of qualities including good tooth color, shape and alignment. Versatile dental porcelain veneers can be used to improve all of those characteristics and more.
Dental porcelain veneers are a wafer-thin layer of super-strong porcelain that convincingly substitutes for natural tooth enamel. When bonded to your teeth, veneers can create a natural-looking, beautiful new surface. Dental porcelain, like natural tooth enamel, is translucent and tough, but doesn't stain like tooth enamel does.
Dental porcelain veneers are not the right fit for everyone. Let’s talk about what you want to achieve with your smile and we’ll help you find the best solution to reach your goals. Just like the teeth nature gave you, teeth restored with veneers need daily brushing and flossing, and regular checkups at the dental office.
Professional Teeth Cleanings
Professional Teeth Cleanings help maintain good oral health.
Even if you brush and floss your teeth faithfully, it is important that you have a professional teeth cleaning on a regular basis. After a thorough cleaning, with a focus on preventing tooth decay and gum disease, your teeth will feel smooth and squeaky-clean, and they will probably look a lot brighter too. But professional teeth cleanings aren't done for looks alone.
Over time your teeth build up a layer of plaque and tartar that is very difficult to remove without special tools and can cause tooth decay and gum disease.
Performed in conjunction with a routine dental examination, professional teeth cleaning can go a long way toward controlling these two common maladies. While your teeth are being cleaned, it's also a good opportunity to take a close look at your oral health in general to avoid more involved dental procedures down the road!
Removable Dentures
Removable Dentures help you smile again.
Full or partial tooth loss doesn't just affect a person's self-image — it can also increase the risk of developing nutritional problems and other systemic health disorders. Fortunately, full or partial removable dentures are a reliable and time-tested method for treating this condition.
There are a variety of removable dentures available to address specific issues, from partial dentures to implant-supported overdentures. The best option for you will depend on your individual situation. Full or partial removable dentures consist of a gum-colored base made of plastic resin, which fits over the remaining alveolar (bone) ridge that formerly held the teeth. The prosthetic teeth projecting from the base are designed to look and function just like your natural teeth. Removable dentures also help support the facial skeleton and the soft tissues of the lips and cheeks, which can help create a more youthful appearance.
With proper care, removable dentures offer a functional, aesthetic and economical solution to the problem of tooth loss.
Root Canal Treatment
Root Canal Treatment is used to save an infected tooth by treating problems of the soft pulp, or nerve tissue, inside the tooth.
Root canal problems stem from infection and inflammation of the tooth's pulp tissue. Infection can be caused by deep tooth decay due to untreated dental cavities, bacteria coming into contact with pulp via chipped or cracked teeth, or trauma to the tooth — potentially from a sports injury or automobile accident. While the pain may temporarily go away, without treatment the infection won't. It can lead to a dental abscess, and may even contribute to systemic problems in other parts of the body.
It is essential to seek treatment immediately, both to try and save the tooth, and to prevent future problems. If an examination shows that you do need root canal therapy, don't worry — it's one of the most routine and effective procedures in the arsenal of dental treatments and can often be accomplished in just one visit. While the infection or inflammation in the tooth's pulp can be excruciatingly painful, in most cases root canal treatment is no more uncomfortable than getting a filling. It's actually one of the most effective ways of relieving some kinds of tooth pain.
Sealants
Sealants protect children's teeth from decay in hard to reach places.
Run your tongue over the chewing surfaces of your back teeth. They are not smooth like other areas of your teeth. Instead, they are filled with tiny grooves referred to as “pits and fissures,” which trap bacteria and food particles. The bristles on a toothbrush can't always reach all the way into these dark, moist little crevices. This creates the perfect conditions for tooth decay, and the most likely location for a cavity to develop in your child's mouth.
Dental sealants are invisible plastic resin coatings that smooth out the chewing surfaces of the back teeth, making them resistant to decay. A sealed tooth is far less likely to develop a cavity, require more expensive dental treatment later on, or, most importantly, cause your child pain.
Sealed teeth need the same daily brushing, flossing, and regular professional cleanings as unsealed teeth. Checking for wear and tear on the sealants is important, though they should last for up to 10 years.
Teeth Whitening
Teeth Whitening brightens a faded or discolored smile.
There’s nothing more welcoming than a sparkling, white smile, yet our teeth rarely stay as white as we'd like without a little help. Fortunately, teeth whitening done in a professional dental setting is a safe, economical and effective way to brighten your smile.
Depending on the whitening method you choose the results can be dramatic. Professional in-office teeth whitening offers the fastest results with the most powerful whitening solutions available, and protects sensitive gums and tooth-root surfaces better than over-the-counter whitening products
Take-home teeth whitening is another option that lets you play a greater role in ensuring the best possible results. Several weeks may be needed to achieve your desired level of whiteness.
There are lots of things you can do to maintain your whitening results as long as possible, most important is maintaining your routine of daily brushing and flossing, and keeping up with your regular schedule of professional cleanings at the dental office. A minor touch-up every so often, either at home or at the dental office, can keep your smile bright and beautiful for years.
TMJ/TMD Treatment
TMJ/TMD Treatment for chronic jaw pain.
TMD, or Temporomandibular disorders, is ongoing pain in the area near your ear, jaw or the muscles on the side of your face, possibly accompanied by a clicking or popping sound or restricted jaw movement. Sometimes people incorrectly use the term TMJ to refer to these problems. TMJ is actually the abbreviation for the temporomandibular joint — or jaw joint — itself. So while you definitely have a TMJ (two of them in fact), you may or may not have TMD.
As with any other joint, the TMJ can be subject to orthopedic problems including inflammation, sore muscles, strained tendons and ligaments, and disk problems. Any of these can become the source of a TMD problem. TMD is also influenced by genes, gender, and age. Physical and psychological stress can also be a factor.
Severe TMD cases may require complex forms of treatment, including orthodontics, dental restorations like bridgework, or minor procedures inside the joint such as cortisone injections or lavage (flushing) of the joint. It’s important to try the wide range of conservative, reversible treatments available first, and give them enough time to work as they almost always prove effective.
Tooth Extractions
Tooth Extractions are used only when a tooth is hopelessly damaged or decayed.
The main goal of dentistry is to preserve your natural teeth and keep them healthy for as long as possible. However, it may be in your best interest (or your child's) to have a tooth extracted (removed) for a variety of reasons: trauma or disease, impacted wisdom teeth, orthodontic treatment, or baby teeth that have overstayed their welcome! Whatever the reason, tooth extraction is typically a very routine procedure and not to be feared when done by an experienced hand.
Tooth extraction is usually carried out with local anesthesia. Additional sedatives may be used for more complicated tooth extractions. By the time the sedation medication has worn off, you won't even be aware that the surgery was done.
It's normal to experience some mild to moderate post-operative discomfort and/or swelling. Taking non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and/or aspirin the day of surgery should control most symptoms. Antibiotics may also be prescribed to ensure infection-free healing. Within a few days, all should be back to normal.
Emergency Dental Treatment
Emergency Dental Treatment
If you have a life-threatening or severe injury, call 911 or go directly to the nearest hospital emergency room. We can treat a variety of traumatic dental injuries, including teeth that have been chipped, moved, or knocked out entirely. Please call our office for assistance.