By definition, restorative dentistry involves the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the teeth and their supporting structures and the rehabilitation of the dentition to aesthetic and function requirements of the individual.
That’s a lot to chew, right?
In layman terms, a dental restoration refers to procedures that a specialist performs to keep your mouth healthy and functional.
These procedures involve high in demand specialty fields of dentistry, including prosthodontics, periodontics, and endodontics. Let’s take a brief look at each.
By definition, restorative dentistry involves the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the teeth and their supporting structures and the rehabilitation of the dentition to aesthetic and function requirements of the individual.
That’s a lot to chew, right?ff
In layman terms, a dental restoration refers to procedures that a specialist performs to keep your mouth healthy and functional. These procedures involve high in demand specialty fields of dentistry, including prosthodontics,periodontics, and endodontics. Let’s take a brief look at each.
Why do you need to see a prosthodontist for your dental care?
Prosthodontists are expert specialists in comprehensive dental care and have gone through three years of advanced dental training. The three years of training and courses focus on comprehensive treatment planning from simple to complex dental problems, management and treatment of patients who require restoration and replacement of lost teeth and gum.
The term "Prostho" means replacing and "dentist" means dealing with teeth. Prosthodontists are THE experts when anything needs to be replaced in your mouth. These replacements can be anything from a single tooth, multiple teeth, to all teeth and gums in the mouth.
Prosthodontics is the dental specialty focussed on the diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of oral function. Comfort, appearance and health of patients are the most important factors to this specialty when obtaining the desired results. Cases including missing or deficient teeth, oral and maxillofacial tissues can be tackled with a knowledgeable specialist.
Prosthodontists undergo extensive training in state-of-the-art techniques and procedures for treating complex dental conditions and restoring optimum function and esthetics. Often, they are referred to as mouth Architects.
To be recognized as a board-certified Prosthodontist, one has to fulfill the Royal College of Dentists of Canada's requirements, which includes passing several assessments and exams. Following this, practitioners are entitled to use the FRCD credential.
Often, complex cases require a coordinated and holistic approach, employing the expertise of several different dental or medical specialists. The role of the Prosthodontist in these cases is binary: administration of professional care to the patient and coordination of the dental team in the patient's treatment plan. They are considered the leaders of developing a dental treatment plan. Some of the most common dental treatments that Prosthodontists provide for their patients are as below.
Dental implants
Dental implants are a type of surgical procedure in which a metal post is surgically implanted into the jawbone to serve as a replacement for the root of a missing tooth. The implant is then used to support a crown, bridge, or denture, depending on the number of missing teeth. Prosthodontics is the branch of dentistry that specializes in the restoration and replacement of missing teeth using a variety of methods, including dental implants. Prosthodontists work closely with oral surgeons to ensure that dental implants are properly placed and can be used to support the desired restoration. Dental implants offer a permanent and natural-looking solution for missing teeth, and can improve the function and appearance of the smile.
Cosmetic Dentistry/Smile makeover
A significant part of a Prosthodontist's everyday work is improving one's smile. They are recognized specialists in cosmetic dental veneers and bonded composite restorations.
Dentures and Implant dentures
Prosthodontists have gone through advanced training in the field of dentures for the replacement of missing teeth. Including, but not limited to, complete and partial dentures, whether they are implant-supported or conventional dentures.
Tooth Wear Treatment/ Full Mouth Rehabilitation
Treatment and management of tooth wear is often a complicated multidisciplinary procedure requiring meticulous planning and teamwork between different dental specialists. In almost all cases, the planning and execution of treatment are done by Prosthodontists. Full mouth reconstruction is a treatment modality for severely damaged dentition, which is a specialty of a prosthodontist.
Treatment of Gummy Smile
Gummy smile or excessive gingival display is defined as a condition where there is an undesirable amount of gum display in a smile. Treatment of gummy smile requires a systematic approach, detailed measurements and analysis of facial structures to find out the etiology and planning the appropriate clinical intervention. Prosthodontists are the pioneer in recognizing the favorable customize smile and presenting available treatment modalities.
Management of jaw joint problems/TMJ
Factors such as parafunction habits (clenching and grindings), severe wear and trauma may cause jaw problem/pain. Management of jaw problems might require bite adjustment or fabrication of the night guard or stabilizing appliance to relief the pain and prevent possible damages to teeth. Prosthodontists have an in-depth knowledge of bite and jaw joints that allows them to redesign your comfort bite.
Maxillofacial Prosthodontics
In circumstances such as facial trauma or aggressive head and neck cancers, substantial facial structure and tissue beyond dentition may be lost. These alterations can be a part of the face, eyes, ears and other parts of the face. Cancers, surgeries and trauma are the most common causes. Often when the extent of defects is vast, they can be managed with graft and reconstructive surgeries; customized prostheses are designed to restore the errors.
Prosthodontics in Vancouver, Kitsilano and Point Grey
Prosthodontics is the branch of dentistry involved with the design, manufacture, and fitting of artificial replacements for teeth and other parts of the mouth. They restore esthetics, function and comfort via the application of artificial substitutes. Here are some common common procedures performed by an prosthodontist:
View more on our Vancouver Kitsilano, Point Grey clinic’s prosthodontist, Dr. Faranak Zaiemdar.