Question: I broke a few of my front teeth due to an accident I had over 15 years ago. I had a dental bridge but I have problems with it more then I should.  I thinking about getting teeth implants so I do not have to continue messing with it every two to three years. I am wondering about cost.

Answer: There is no one set price for dental implants cost will very from dentist to dentist, cost factors can include the cost of dental implant surgery, cost of the post, cost of the crown. In addition if needed, you may have cost for any synthetic bone material. Basic dental implant pricing and fees can range from around $1200 to $3000 per tooth. However if a patient required to have additional services such as a bone regeneration and sinus elevation, dental implants cost will be much higher.

Interleukin Genetics, Inc. (OTCQB: ILIU) have announced the online publication of the research study “Patient Stratification for Preventive Dental Care” in Journal of Dental Research. The study provides new insights into the prevention of periodontitis (gum disease) and the opportunity for significant advancement in the delivery of personalized, preventive dental care. Periodontitis affects 47 percent of the adult population.

Most dental insurance plan have some type of dental provider date base.  So a good start when looking for a new dentist is to use the provider date base your dental insurance plan provides. Also in some plans by using the plan network of dental providers you receive better benefits under the plan.  However you may still want to call the dental office to do further research on the potential dental office you have found. Here are a few tips on what to ask when searching for a new dentist.

1) Ask about the dentist educational background and credentials
2) Ask what you should expect during the first exam.
3) Ask to make sure if the office staff goes over the treatment options and cost before work is started. It is important to make sure you have the right information including what is covered by your dental insurance plan and your cost before making treatment decisions.
4) How does the dental office file out claims and what is expected from you at the time of service.  Some dental office may file the claim and bill you latter for any unpaid balances. Where as other dental office may make you pay in full at the time dental services are render, and have you file out your own claim so premium benefits are paid back to you.
5) Know the office hours and how patient emergencies are handled outside of regular hours.
6) Ask any additional questions that are important to you in choosing a dentist.

Question: I brush my teeth once a day I really do not see the need to do some more often.

Answer: It is advise that a person should brush their teeth at least twice a day. once in the morning and once at night.  By brushing your teeth in the morning you are killing germs left in your mouth and fighting not only plaque build up but bad morning breath.  By brushing your teeth at night you are removing food debris that was left on your teeth by eating throughout the day.  Also it is very important to make sure  your dental care habits do not stop at brushing. You need to floss at night every day too if you want to  maintain good dental habits and healthier teeth and gums.

When choosing a new dentist you are having to make a very important decision.  You are entrusting this new dentist (with whom you do not have any prior experience with), to help you take care of your dental and oral health. Therefore, before you can find the right dentist it is a good idea to have some basic criteria laid out that is important to you.  Here are some tips that may help you make a list.

1) Location: Finding a dentist that is close to home, work or school will help to make keeping appointments easier.  Also if the dental office is locally to you, you are more likely to maintain regular dental visits.

2) Special Requirements: What main requirement are you looking for in a dental office? There can be many personal requirements you will need a dentist to be able to provide, such as:

* A dentist who specializes in treating children
* A dentist who specializes in treating patient with dental fears
* A dentist who specializes in treating adults or children with special needs
* A dentist who has a handicap-accessible office
* A dentist who can provide language services or translations when needed.
* A dentist that provides a clean and friendly environment

3) Making Dental Appointments: When looking for a new dental office you want a dentist that is not so busy that you have to wait long periods of time to book an appointment.

4) Office Hours: Know the dentist office hours. You many not want a dentist that is only open M-F 8-5 if those also happen to be your working hours.  Many dentist have latter hours or open on the weekend so this something that is important to ask.

The newly discovered bacterium that causes gum disease delivers a one-two punch by also triggering normally protective proteins in the mouth to actually destroy more bone, a University of Michigan study found. Scientists and oral health care providers have known for decades that bacteria are responsible for periodontitis, or gum disease. Until now, however, they hadn’t identified the bacterium.

Porcelain veneers are often used in order to fix cosmetic complaints such as tooth Discoloration, small chips and gaps. However because porcelain veneers are often used for cosmetic purposes many dental insurance plans do not offer coverages on dental veneers. That said if you are thinking about having porcelain veneers check with your dental insurance plan ahead of time to confirm if you will receive any benefits.  If you do not you may want to look into getting a dental discount plan which will normally reduce the cost of porcelain veneers by at least 20 percent.

Porcelain veneers help to improve the appearance of teeth by correcting cosmetic complaints such as tooth discoloration, chips and gaps. Porcelain veneers are thin facades of a special dental ceramic that can be attached to the front of teeth. They generally, replace the entire tooth front and sometimes they even go up over the top of the tooth as well.   Because porcelain veneers are fitted only to the front of your teeth, they are not able to completely protect your teeth. They are not suitable for placing on a tooth that has received significant structural damage from decay, cracking, or previous fillings. In order to protect these teeth, you would need a dental crown.

After you buy a dental insurance plan of your choice, the best advise is to use it.  However here are some tips that you may want to make note of.

1) Know where you got your dental insurance.  With many of dental insurance plans being sold on line it is important to remember where you bough your dental insurance plan.

2) Know the contact number of the agent/website that you bough your dental plan though. In many cases if you have questions about your dental insurance plan you need to be able to contact the place you bought the plan from.

3) If you receive dental benefits though your employer, make sure to know the member service number for your dental insurance plan.  If you do not have that talk to the person that handles you employee benefits to get it.   Having the correct member service numbers for your dental insurance plan from the start will make things easier for you when and if you ever need to call about your dental insurance plan. So make sure you put this information somewhere you can easily access it.

Question: My child is three and is going to the dentist for the first time what can I do to make it less scary for her.

Answer:  Since your child is old enough to understand about going to the dentist, there are several things you can do to ease any anxiety she may have.  Such as:

* Give her a sneak peek. Take her with you to your next checkup to get her used to the sights and sounds, and let her watch you as you have your mouth check and or teeth cleaned. She will see that though the tooth polisher is noisy, it does not hurt.

* Make sure to choose a kid-friendly dentist. Pediatric dentists are trained in child development and understand how to make kids comfortable. Besides having an upbeat, patient manner, the dentist should add kid-friendly elements to the exam. Some provide sunglasses to block out the bright examining lights and toys to keep their minds off their mouths. Others use puppets to teach proper brushing, and offer post-exam treats like stickers. Ask your pediatrician for a referral.

* Make sure book the denal appointment at a time when you and your child are well rested. If you need to rush back to work or she is tired, the visit will be off to a bad start before you even arrive.

Sadly many people do not buy dental insurance until they have larger dental needs that need to be address right away.  It is not a good idea to put off buying dental insurance until a larger dental need arises.  However, since many people do,  it is important that you understand your current dental needs in order to buy a plan that will best fit your needs.

By putting off buying a dental insurance plan you may have to give up a few things in order to receive the dental treatment that is needed.   To give you an example of this:  Say you have a dentist you like to go to, however that dentist only accepts PPO dental insurance plans. Now your problem is that since you do not have a current dental PPO plan in force, you may have to change dental providers in order to get the needed dental care treatment.

Reason for this: Many PPO plans come with long term waiting periods that will effect the benefits received and what is and what is not covered at the effective date of the plan.  Lets say you do not want to change dental providers, then you are either having to pay the total out of pocket cost for your dental care or wait until the plan waiting periods are up.  If choosing to delay dental care treatment talk to your dentist and make sure that is a good idea.  Many times it is not sound advise to defer dental care when needed since it only helps to creates larger dental care needs.

Yet this can be avoided when buying dental insurance before larger dental care issues are needed.  In fact by having dental insurance in force you are more likely to see the dentist for regular dental checkups and cleaning thus preventing the need for larger dental care issues.

According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry they recommend that you take your child in for an initial dental visit at around 12 months. Other experts recommend waiting until she’s closer to two. Talk with your pediatrician about what is best for your child. Once she starts going to the dentist, you should aim for a checkup twice a year. Just remember: The main goal is establishing good habits early.

When shopping for dental insurance it is important to understand the benefits that are available for any specialist.  Plans such as HMO plans will normally provide around 20 – 30 percent saving off of their plan specialist after having a referral from the general dentist you are assigned to.   Under PPO plans their coverages are normally based off of percentage covered up to UCR based on general dentist cost.  This important to understand because you have a greater likelihood of having UCR fees when going to a specialist.

Question:  My baby is only 13 week old but I was wondering when he will get his first tooth?

Answer:  Normally babies get their first tooth around six months, but it can appear as early as three months or as late as 14 months. Typically, babies get teeth in pairs and they generally emerge in this order:

*  The bottom front teeth (incisors)

*  The top front teeth (incisors)

*  The bottom side teeth (incisors) and the upper side ones

*  The first molars (grinding teeth at the back of the mouth)

*  The canines (pointed teeth next to incisors)

*  The second molars

But every child is different.  By age two 1/2, most children will have about 20 teeth.

Generally when someone buys auto insurance they do not think that just because they did not get into and accident that year, the money spent into having auto insurance was wasted. Yet for some reason for many people that is how they see dental insurance.

Yes it is important to take cost into account and make sure you are buying the right dental insurance plan that best fits your needs.  However, dental insurance is one type of insurance that you should be using to the fullest.  Unlike auto insurance where you use it when you get into and accident, dental insurance provides benefits for you to use in order to avoid having larger future needs. As well as still being there for you when larger dental care is needed.  In short if you feel the cost of insurance is a waste of money then you are probably not using your plan to it fullest.

Make sure to have your preventive dental care twice a year under most dental insurance plans preventive dental services are free. Normally preventive dental care includes office visits, oral evaluations, X-rays and basic cleanings.  Without out insurance for an individual these services can cost around $250.00.  Times that by two for your twice a year checkup and you are at $500.00. If you have a family of four you are talking over $2000.00 in dental care cost a year and that just for preventive services.

Here are some tips on getting your child to brush their teeth.

* Give some control. Set up toothbrush caddy with a toothbrushes, a colorful cup, a timer, and a mirror. This way they can can choose the brush, set the timer, and watch themselves while brushing.

* Turn brushing into a game. As you brush child teeth, tell your child you are scrubbing the upstairs and downstairs teeth, the front door, and the rooms in the back. Or that you are chasing cave monsters around his mouth. Or that you will brush for the length of a favorite song. This should enable you to brush his teeth for the recommended two minutes.

Consider buying an electric toothbrush for kids over three. They have been shown to do a considerably better job of removing plaque than manual brushes do.

Until your child is around five or six, he or she will not have the fine motor skills to maneuver the toothbrush. Therefore you will have to brush for him or her. When your child is around three, you can try placing your hand over his as he/she brushes.

Since we have talked about in prior post how a Dental PPO and Indemnity plans work and their limitation, when shopping for a dental insurance plan try asking yourself a few basic questions.  By doing this it will help you determent which plan is designed right for you.

* Do you need any major dental work right away: In prior posted we talked about plan waiting periods. Therefore dental plans with waiting periods of six months for basic services and 12 months for major services may not be best advise if you need immediate dental care.

* How much dental work is needed: With many plans having annual maximum it is important to fully understand your own dental care needs.  If you need to have multiple major procedures that will may push you over your annual max limit you either need to buy a dental plan with a higher max limitation or make sure to have services render as to not exceed your limitation without you knowing it.

* Are you trying to say with a dental provider:  One of the major positives about dental PPO’s and Indemnity plans is that you are able to normally choose your own dentist without having to only pick from a limited provider pool within the plan network. Yet if this is not important to you, you may want to review HMO plans with are normally lower in cost with fewer limitations.

Teething does not always go hand in hand with discomfort and sleepless nights. Many parents scarcely notice their child is teething until they spot a tiny pearl poking through their baby’s red gum. But some babies provide plenty of warning that teeth are on the way. Common symptoms in the weeks before teeth sprout include excessive crankiness, frequent crying, a change in appetite, lots of drooling, gnawing, and even ear pulling. Swelling in the gums is the source of the pain.

You can alleviate your baby’s discomfort by providing something to chomp on, such as chilled washcloth, cold teething toys, or rings filled with water. Distraction can also work. Give your baby a little extra one-on-one playtime, and lots of cuddling.

Many plans such as PPO’s and Indemnity dental insurance plans have waiting periods.  Even some HMO plans come with limited waiting periods.  However what are waiting periods how how do they effect you?   A waiting period is the number of months a plan member must be enrolled in the plan before certain procedures are covered by the insurance company. Typically, PPO and Indemnity plans will have a 6 month waiting period before basic services are covered and a 12 month waiting period before major services are covered.

Although waiting periods will very depending on each plan. When buying plans with waiting periods it is important to understand that there will not be coverages for dental services that fall into the waiting periods until you have had that plan for the stated time period.  Therefore buying this type of dental insurance when you have a toothache may not be the best fit and you may want to review HMO plans that do not have waiting periods or dental discount plans.