What we can do for you.

We offer a complete range of dental services at our practice, where appropriate, we will refer you to a specialist for their expertise and advice:-

New patient examinations
When you first visit us we need to establish a baseline for your current oral health - this will take about 40 minutes. We carefully examine your teeth, gums and mouth and record our findings. We will discuss any dental concerns you have and, if necessary, discuss treatments you may benefit from. We will discuss costs with you and prepare a written treatment plan with precise costs and send this to you. We also take digital x-rays of your teeth and these will be recorded on your file.

Regular check-ups
Regular check-ups enable your dentist to monitor your dental health. The dentist will be looking for small changes in your mouth, teeth and gums that may indicate an underlying problem. Regular attendance is important and your dentist will suggest how often you need to attend.

Hygiene appointments
To maintain good oral health, long-term, we need you to work with us. A good brushing techniques is important as well as regular flossing. Nicky will help you with these aspects of looking after your teeth, gums and mouth. Nicky works very closely with your dentist. Some conditions can only be helped with the intervention of the dentist and hygienist. Using the hygienist is a very cost-effective way of improving the health of your mouth. Nicky spends a minimum of 20 minutes scaling and polishing your teeth.

Tooth whitening
Our teeth darken with age. Drinks such as tea, coffee and red wine stain our teeth. Tooth whitening helps restore our teeth to their original colour.

Restoration
Damaged or decayed teeth often need some form of treatment to repair them. This treatment is known as restoration work.

Fillings
A filling replaces part of a tooth that has been lost because of decay or through accidental damage. 'Silver' fillings are made of amalgam - a mixture of mercury with other metals, such as silver, tin and copper. They are very strong, so they are ideal for back teeth, where there is heavy wear from chewing. 'Composite', 'glass ionomer' and 'compomer' are different types of white filling. Unlike silver (amalgam) fillings, white filling material sticks to teeth and can form edges, so it may be effectively used to repair front teeth that are chipped, broken, decayed or worn. It can also be used to cover marks or discolouration that cleaning won't remove. White fillings come in a range of shades so they can be matched to the colour of your own teeth.

Placing a filling
Your dentist will usually numb the area around the tooth with an injection (local anaesthetic). A drill is used to remove any decay, together with any old filling material. Then the tooth is washed and dried by blowing water and then air onto it (the dentist will be holding something which looks like a water pistol). A mild acid is then applied to etch (roughen) the surface of the hole. It is then washed and dried again. The etching helps the filling stick better. A layer of bonding agent is applied to the hole and acts like a cement to help hold the filling in place. It has to be set (hardened) using a bright light (called a curing light). The filling material is then pushed into the cavity (hole), shaped and then hardened using the same bright light. A drill is used to trim and polish the filling as necessary.

Root Canal Treatment
Sometimes your dentist will need to root fill a tooth - the root canal is filled. This is a very delicate procedure where time and patience are the key ingredients to a good outcome.

Root Filling
Teeth are held in the jaws by their roots. Front teeth normally have one root, but teeth further back have more. At the core of each tooth is a soft mass of tissue called the pulp. Tooth decay or injury can destroy the living pulp and make it more prone to infection. This can lead to an abscess and toothache. Root fillings (also known as root canal treatment or endodontics) are carried out to remove damaged or dead pulp. The space left can then be filled to prevent any further infection getting in. An x-ray can show the number and shape of the root canals, and also signs of infection (an abscess) in the surrounding bone. You will usually be given a local anaesthetic to numb the tooth. Then an opening is made through the top of the tooth, down into the pulp, using a drill. The dentist then uses narrow files to remove the dead pulp from the core of the tooth and from the root canal. At this point, the dentist may put in a temporary filling and possibly also give you antibiotics if any infection has spread beyond the tooth. If so, you will have to return at a later date, once symptoms have settled, so the dentist can complete the treatment. In the next stage, the dentist fills the root canal. A filling is then placed on top of this to protect the root filling and, if necessary, the tooth can be crowned at a later date.

Crowns
A crown may be suggested by your dentist as a way of restoring your tooth if it has broken down or has a filling that compromises the strength of your tooth. The crown is manufactured by our preferred dental laboratory (Kingsbridge Dental Laboratory). The crown fits over the top of your tooth. The crown matches the colour and shape of your existing teeth. The crown of a tooth is the part which is visible in the mouth. An artificial crown completely covers a damaged tooth above the gum line and protects it. Crowns can also improve the appearance of misshapen or discoloured teeth. Crowns are made of metal or porcelain, or porcelain with metal inside for strength. The colour and shape can be matched to your own teeth. The dentist shapes the tooth so that there is room for the artificial crown to fit over the top. Preparation time will depend on how damaged the tooth is and whether it needs to be built up with a filling first. The tooth might have to be root-filled first - this is sometimes called 'removing the nerve'. The crown is sometimes held in place by a peg or post in the root canal if a lot of the tooth is missing. Your dentist will use a soft mouldable material to make an exact 'impressions' of the tooth that is to be crowned and the nearby teeth. A dental technician uses the impressions to make the crown the exact height and size needed. A temporary crown made of plastic or metal is put over the tooth until the permanent crown is made. You can chew on a temporary crown but it won't be as strong as the finished one. When the crown is ready, the temporary one is removed and the permanent one put it its place. The dentist will make small adjustments to make sure you can bite comfortably.

Veneers and Inlays
We can improve the look of your teeth by applying veneers or inlays to your teeth. The veneer or inlay is manufactured by our preferred dental laboratory. The veneer or inlay is bonded to your tooth.

Bridges
If you have lost a tooth it's possible to 'bridge' between adjacent teeth and provide a false tooth for the gap. The bridge is manufactured by our laboratory. A bridge is one way of replacing a missing tooth. It fixes a replacement tooth (or teeth) to the natural teeth on either side of the gap. Some bridges have crowns at each end. Others are fixed to the surface of the teeth next to the gap. Bridges are made of metal and porcelain or sometimes just porcelain. The teeth can be matched to the colour of your own teeth. The teeth that will support the bridge are prepared to take the fixings and to make sure that the bridge is not too bulky. An impression is taken of the teeth and any gaps, and the dental technician uses this to make the bridge. A plastic temporary bridge or temporary crown may be fitted in the meantime. At your final visit, the dentist will check that the bridge fits, make any minor adjustments and then fix it permanently in place. Your dentist or hygienist will show you the best way of keeping your new bridge clean.

Implants
We will assess your suitability for implants and then refer you to a specialist. We will work very closely with the specialist oral surgeon and we will do much of the restoration work once the implant has been placed.

Preventative Advice
We will help you with maintaining good oral health with advice on diet, brushing and flossing. Both your dentist and hygienist will support with this.

Practice opening hours

We are open from Monday to Friday. We close for lunch each day from 1pm to 2pm. Emergency cover is provided outside these hours. The emergency cover service is only available to registered patients of this practice. Call the practice (01803 835 418) and listen to the message where you will be given instructions on what to do. The 'on-call' dentist will call you back. You may have to wait for upto 6 hours before a dentist calls you back.

Monday	08:30 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 17:30
Tuesday	08:30 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 17:30
Wednesday	08:30 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 17:30
Thursday	08:30 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 17:30
Friday	08:30 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 17:30
Saturday	Closed
Sunday	Closed