You've Lost a Tooth—Now What? Your Tooth Replacement Options

Sometimes things just happen.  You bite a cherry pit one too many times.  You think you’re an ice crusher.  Your tooth gets tired and breaks in half and has to be removed.  The adjacent teeth are happy and do not want to get involved.   So what to do?

In the past your choices were to just go without the tooth which is still a possibility today.  However, most people want to replace the tooth.  You could involve the adjacent teeth with a bridge which is three teeth connected together but, with this option the adjacent teeth have to be cut down in order for crowns or caps to be placed.  Then the three teeth are connected making it harder to clean the area.

Another option is to make some plastic teeth that you place within your mouth in the morning and remove at night.  Problem here is they move around and do not feel like real teeth.  They're not wooden like George Washington’s but they are not real either.

Today there's a better option called a dental implant.  Here the adjacent teeth are not involved.  This is not a removable device but like a tooth stays in your jaw.  Just like a regular tooth it is easy to keep clean.  No matter what we do in dentistry we cannot recreate nature but this is a close second.

For an implant a piece of titanium is placed in your jaw resembling the root of your original tooth.  Then a crown is made which resembles what your tooth looked like in your jaw.  It’s not a real tooth but it functions and feels like the one you lost.

Dental insurance companies will generally cover half the cost of this procedure if your employer likes you.  It takes a little while to complete and it does cost you some money but in the end everyone feels  happier to have the missing tooth replaced.  We have been doing these procedures in office for more than a decade.  So if you are missing a tooth or you’ve been missing a tooth, give it a thought and maybe a new tooth will come into your life. 

  At the dental practice of Dr Glenn Reit DDS located at 1498 Third Avenue between 84th and 85th streets we care about you and your teeth.  With decades of experience we’ve seen it all.  Our vision is to educate you about your dental health, give you alternatives for any treatment you may need and discuss what it will cost before we begin so you may make an educated decision on how to proceed.

We want to instill confidence and create a bond with you while performing your dentistry in a stress free environment.  We realize going to the dentist is not on most people’s top ten list so our goal is to give you more in service value than what you pay for your dentistry.

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Looking for a Dentist in the Upper East Side?

At the practice of Glenn Reit DDS; we provide quality care in a relaxed, comfortable, clean and safe environment. Please contact us today at 212 517 9000 for this or any other of your dental needs. We look forward to seeing and taking care of you!

Can I Ignore A Cracked Tooth

If you see a crack, you must react. There is a difference between a craze line and a crack. Everyone has craze lines on their teeth. If you hold a light up to your teeth you will see fine lines on the surface of the teeth. This is caused over time due to temperature differentials when you eat. You bite into an ice cream cone and the ice cream is below 32 degrees. You then immediately drink some coffee which could be at 90 degrees. The immediate difference in temperature causes these lines to occur. A crack however is much deeper and more apparent. If you bite down on something and your tooth starts to hurt you may have a crack. If you’re a grinder or clench, meaning you bite down hard on your teeth or move your jaw back and forth while holding your teeth together, a crack can only become worse. Clenching and grinding is due to stress, and if you can’t remove the stress, we can help with a night guard. It’s like when your car’s windshield is hit with a rock, sometimes it causes a chip while at other times the chip expands into a crack which progresses. This is the condition with your teeth. Sometimes a chip turns into a crack and can spread. In a minor case it is seen and repaired quickly. Left alone, it can expand into the nerve requiring root canal therapy. In the worst case, it can fracture your tooth in half requiring the removal of the entire tooth. So if you see a crack, go on the attack and give us a call so we can resolve your situation.

At the dental practice of Dr Glenn Reit DDS located at 1498 Third Avenue between 84th and 85th streets we care about you and your teeth.  With decades of experience we’ve seen it all.  Our vision is to educate you about your dental health, give you alternatives for any treatment you may need and discuss what it will cost before we begin so you may make an educated decision on how to proceed.

We want to instill confidence and create a bond with you while performing your dentistry in a stress free environment.  We realize going to the dentist is not on most people’s top ten list so our goal is to give you more in service value than what you pay for your dentistry.

Call us today at 212 517 9000.  You and your teeth will be glad you did.

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Looking for a Dentist in the Upper East Side?

At the practice of Glenn Reit DDS; we provide quality care in a relaxed, comfortable, clean and safe environment. Please contact us today at 212 517 9000 for this or any other of your dental needs. We look forward to seeing and taking care of you!

Dental Implants: The Best Way to Replace a Missing Tooth

Only a dentist can love a tooth but most individuals love their smile. Sometimes due to trauma or failure of a dental restoration a tooth will need to be removed. Unfortunately teeth are unable to repair themselves when injured. A minor incident can lead to a filling or if a filling fails to a crown. Now you’re royalty. I wonder how many crowns Queen Elizabeth has? Dental crowns, that is. Sometimes the nerve in your tooth decides to check out. In that case a root canal may be needed. But, even root canals can fail and if that happens and the tooth is lost you may want a replacement. Back in the day if you lost a tooth you had three options: Do nothing, replace it with a tooth permanently connected to your adjacent teeth or with a tooth you could take in and out of your mouth. Today, if you lose a tooth we can replace it with one that is most like your original tooth and not compromise any of your existing teeth. This is accomplished by placing a dental implant. A dental implant is a biocompatible piece of titanium which looks like you own dental tooth’s root. It is placed into your jaw basically right into the hole where your original tooth resided. Several months later the bone of your jaw will grow into the implant allowing the piece of titanium to become part of your jaw. At this point a crown can be placed on the implant which resembles your own original tooth. Since the implant mimics your own tooth in appearance and function you will believe it is your own. The implant surgery is done right here in the office. you will be able to function normally the next morning. Since the treatment is spread out over several months, so is the cost. Dental insurance companies will cover this procedure if the tooth involved was taken out while the insurance policy is in effect. For those with flexible spending plans this is a qualified expenditure. Even if you lost your tooth several years ago we may still be able to replace it with an implant with an additional procedure done at the time of implant placement. Realize when you lose a tooth you begin losing bone which supports the tooth. The loss of bone can lead to a dimple expression on your face. Most adults are not into the Shirley Temple look. If this situation sounds like you or if you have friends or loved ones who have that gap tooth look come on in for a consultation to see if this is a solution for them or you.

At the dental practice of Dr Glenn Reit DDS located at 1498 Third Avenue between 84th and 85th streets we care about you and your teeth.  With decades of experience we’ve seen it all.  Our vision is to educate you about your dental health, give you alternatives for any treatment you may need and discuss what it will cost before we begin so you may make an educated decision on how to proceed.

We want to instill confidence and create a bond with you while performing your dentistry in a stress free environment.  We realize going to the dentist is not on most people’s top ten list so our goal is to give you more in service value than what you pay for your dentistry.

Call us today at 212 517 9000.  You and your teeth will be glad you did

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Looking for a Dentist in the Upper East Side?

At the practice of Glenn Reit DDS; we provide quality care in a relaxed, comfortable, clean and safe environment. Please contact us today at 212 517 9000 for this or any other of your dental needs. We look forward to seeing and taking care of you!

Missing a Tooth? Here’s How Dental Implants Can Restore Your Smile

If you notice in the reception area of the practice we have plants. They are actually alive and growing. No plastic plants here. In addition to planting plants we also plant teeth in areas of missing teeth. The planting is called implanting as in placing a piece of titanium into your jaw in the shape of a tooth’s root to allow us to restore a missing tooth with a created one that closely matches your former tooth. Is there a tooth in your mouth that is now no longer present? Did you lose that tooth due to trauma as in biting on ice, a cherry or olive pit? Did you fall down and hit that tooth? Did you have a root canal procedure years ago which has now failed. The big question is; do you miss that tooth? If so, we have an answer for you. We can replace it without disturbing your adjacent teeth. We have been doing this in the practice for more than 10 years. In the past, the standard of care in dentistry was to do a bridge. Think George Washington which consists of two towers with a suspended roadway. A bridge in dentistry where you are missing a tooth would involve reducing the two adjacent teeth next to the missing tooth and then creating a roadway or three connected teeth or crowns together to restore the missing tooth. The problem is the adjacent teeth could be decay free and now you are grinding them down to nubs. In addition it’s hard to floss between attached teeth leading to a greater chance of gum disease. The beauty of the implant is that the adjacent teeth are not touched. You are only replacing the lost tooth and once restored you will still be able to floss normally. Esthetically your new tooth will match your other teeth and only you will know you had the procedure. Insurance generally pays for fifty percent of the procedure up to your insurance maximum. If you are missing a tooth, maybe now is the time to consider a dental implant. If you have flexible spending, October is usually the month to make your contribution for next year. If this sounds interesting to you; give us a call today and we’ll discuss your situation.

At the dental practice of Dr Glenn Reit DDS located at 1498 Third Avenue between 84th and 85th streets we care about you and your teeth.  With decades of experience we’ve seen it all.  Our vision is to educate you about your dental health, give you alternatives for any treatment you may need and discuss what it will cost before we begin so you may make an educated decision on how to proceed.

We want to instill confidence and create a bond with you while performing your dentistry in a stress free environment.  We realize going to the dentist is not on most people’s top ten list so our goal is to give you more in service value than what you pay for your dentistry.

Call us today at 212 517 9000.  You and your teeth will be glad you did.

---

Looking for a Dentist in the Upper East Side?

At the practice of Glenn Reit DDS; we provide quality care in a relaxed, comfortable, clean and safe environment. Please contact us today at 212 517 9000 for this or any other of your dental needs. We look forward to seeing and taking care of you!