It is about how happy you are about your smile. You see, you cannot be considered to be opitimally healthy if your unhappy with your smile. In fact, it can can be argued that if your are acutely unhappy with your smile, your will be unable to express yourself in a positive manner and ultimately effect the quality of all your relationships.

I find great satisfaction as a dentist to be involved in having a huge impact on the quality of people's lives. Part of my job is to make people extremely happy with their smiles. They glow with confidence, they speak without hesitation and they will be more successful in life and their work. Just check out how happy these people are and what this will do for their lives:

Jill & Jenna

Irida

Computerized simulations are very helpful in showing what impact improvements can make in a smile before anything is addressed. Of course, we have many ways to create that special smile.

Lumineers™ are a fantastic no drill, no shot way to create the remarkable smile.

Invisalign™ has been a natural way to move teeth into their ideal place without anyone knowing your straightening your teeth.

Deep laser whitening™ has brighten many smiles in just a couple of visits.

If your interested in knowing how we can make you happy with your smile, call my office to see and discuss your choices. it is never too late to feel good about your life.

LUMINEERS - the painless way to bring out the beautiful, healthy, natural, permanently white smile in you. LUMINEERS are custom designed to give you the beautiful smile you've always dreamed of. Unlike traditional veneers, there are no shots, no drilling of sensitive tooth structure, and no pain. They're even reversible, so you have nothing to lose and a beautiful smile to gain. Plus LUMINEERS are proven to last for over 20 years, so your beautiful smile will be with you for years and years.

The LUMINEERS Difference.

While traditional veneers involve a much longer, more painful process that can take months, LUMINEERS placement is quick and painless. The traditional veneers are sometimes referred to as crowns or caps. There porcelain sleeves are placed over teeth through a process that can demand extensive and irreversible cutting away of healthy tooth structure. This can require multiple painful shots and many visits to the dentist with long appointments. Once teeth have been cut away, temporary crowns are placed on the teeth while the traditional veneers are made, which can take months. The temporaries are then removed, potentially requiring shots again, and the permanent veneers are placed. Sometimes additional appointments are required to ensure that bite is correct. In contract to traditional veneers, LUMINEERS don't require shots or drilling of sensitive tooth structure, and that means no pain. That's because LUMINEERS are ultra-thin so they can be applied seamlessly over your existing teeth in only two easy visits to your dentist.

What would you like to change about your smile? Crooked teeth, cheeped teeth, a Hollywood smile, spaces between your teeth, discolored teeth? LUMINEERS can do all that and so much more for you. Are LUMINEERS right for you? Changes are yes, the next time you come to see us or you would like to learn more about LUMINEERS feel free to give us a all at 586-263-4060.

To celebrate our 30 years in dental practice, we would like to invite you to an Invisalign Open House summer event from June 17th through August 19th. Invisalign is a fantastic way to straighten your teeth without ugly and painful braces! This summer event Special Offer includes:

Free consultation to find out if you qualify*
Orthodontic records (photos, impressions and x-rays) a $500 value for only $100
All attendees will receive $300 off treatment
FREE teeth whitening ($300 value) for all Invisalign patients
An additional $200 off treatment if you refer a friend
special no interest financing as low as $89/month
New Teen Invisalign certified for growing teens as young as 11 years
food, fun, door prizes and more!

Please RSVP your preferred time for this event by clicking:

or calling our office at:
586-263-4060

It is that easy!

*absoultely NO OBLIGATION to find out if you Invisalign works for you.

Check out this amazing interview of Jill and Jenna as they talk about how excited they are about their new smile. We accomplished these results in less than one year with removing any permanent teeth. Check it out at:

Jill & Jenna

Cigarette smoking and smokeless tobacco use result in oral lesions including oral cancer, periodontal (gum) disease, an increased risk of tooth decay, and tooth loss. Smokers experience more periodontal disease and more severe forms of periodontal disease than non smokers, and in young people it is a risk factor for aggressive destructive periodontal disease. To make matters worse the response to periodontal therapy is less favorable in smoker.

Smokeless tobacco is associated with an increase in tooth decay. Smokeless tobacco contains high levels of sugar and is typically held in one place for long periods of time. Smokers have an increase in tooth decay also due to a decrease in salivary flow (dryer mouth). And just think I haven't even mentioned what the staining does to the appearance of your teeth!

If you are a tobacco user smoker or smokeless there are many products that can help you quit! Your dentist can be a great resource for accessing these products as some require a prescription. They can also be a great source of support and encouragement. Many people make more than one attempt at quitting before they are successful so don't give up. Never quit quitting!

Unlike most diseases that give us early warning signs, gum disease progresses silently, often without pain. It may develop slowly or progress quite rapidly. Some of the symptoms of gum disease include bad breath that won't go away, red or swollen gums, tender or bleeding gums, painful chewing, loose teeth and sensitive teeth.

You might be asking yourself, well what can I do to prevent gum disease? Here are some things you can do to prevent periodontal diseases: Brush your teeth twice a day (with a fluoride toothpaste), floss every day, visit the dentist routinely for a check-up and professional cleaning, eat a well balanced diet and don't use tobacco products.

There is good news dentists and physicians can in many cases detect tissue changes in the early caner stages or even the precancer stage. Many times patient disregard the early signs as not worrisome. It is imperative that you have any sore or discolored area checked if it doesn't go away with in 14 days!!!

Risk factors for oral cancer:

40 years of age or older

Tobacco use

Heavy alcohol use

Historically 75% of those diagnosed who were age 50 or older were tobacco users. Adding alcohol to tobacco use increases the risk 15 times.

The newest risk factor is HPV(Human Papiloma Virus) it is the same virus that causes 90% of all cervical cancer in women.

Many dentists are using some newer technology to help find oral cancer at it's earliest stages so get your oral cancer screening even those of you who don't have teeth are at risk for oral cancer.

Porcelain veneers are a great way to transform your smile.

You might be asking yourself well what are porcelain veneers and how can transform my smile? Veneers are shells of porcelain that are bonded to the front of teeth to create a cosmetic improvement and sometimes a bite improvement. Porcelain veneers have successfully improved smiles by making dark teeth look lighter and healthier looking. They can make yellow teeth permanently whiter and gray stained teeth look much more natural. Porcelain veneers can make crooked teeth look straight in just a few days. You can look and feel more confident, more professional and have a wonderfully natural looking smile.

Veneers can correct:

- Uneven or crooked teeth that have shapes that are out of proportion.

- Stained teeth that have gray color spaces between teeth

- Too much gum when you smile

- Yellow teeth that are dark and cannot be whitened or bleached

- Teeth that are sensitive can be made much less sensitive

- Worn down teeth that make you look old

What are some of the advantages to porcelain veneers?

There are many advantages of getting porcelain veneers. First and foremost they will give your teeth a natural and healthy appearance. Porcelain veneers have an advantage over other cosmetic bonding techniques since they are translucent and have a glass like appearance that is natural looking.The surface of your tooth is duplicated to give a more natural dental enamel. Porcelain is a ceramic heat fired and does not pick up stains. If there is a stain, it can be polished off easily during a normal cleaning.

Porcelain veneers could be the perfect solution for your smile, ask us about a cosmetic consultation.

Sealants are easy to place and require no drilling or numbing! We simply clean and the tooth and place a preparing solution which we rinse off and then we dry the tooth. Finally we squirt a filler material into the deep grooves of the tooth and shine a special light to harden the material and you are all set.

When should these sealants be placed you might ask. They are best placed shortly after the teeth are completely visible in the mouth. The very first permanent back tooth or molar usually erupts around the age of six. These first permanent molars come in behind all of the baby teeth which are usually in place by around age two years.

So if your child has his/her permanent molars in you may want to ask about dental sealants as a way to prevent unnecessary cavities.

According to most recent university studies....everything. Treating gum disease now is more than saving your teeth, it is about reducing inflamatory mediators that are in play with heart disease and brain defects like Alzimer's disease. Some studies show a strong correlation between dental plaque and calculus build up in the mouth and arterial thickening and build up involved in cardiovascular disease. "Inflamation load" now is implied in nearly every degenerative condition from diabetes, cardiovascular disease, brain dementia's, arthritis and auto-immune diseases. Gum disease, even early stages of gingivitis, represends a chronic inflamatory condition unlike having a open sore or wound that is not allowed to heal and seal itself from constant bacterial and inflamatory bombardment systemically.

So if you are not recieving regular dental care that monitors and treats gum disease, now is the time to start! Call our office today and live longer.

As stated before many migraine headaches and around 98% of TMJ pain cases have origins in muscular hyperactivity. The benefit of the NTI over traditional full coverage night guards is that studies have shown that when only the front teeth are in contact the muscles that close the jaw and clench are only able to produce about 1/3 the normal force. This allows the muscles to relax and the symptoms to subside. If a full coverage night guard is used, the back teeth are still able to contact which allows 100% clenching force to occur. The teeth will be protected from any bruxism or grinding, but the clenching force will not be decreased. The NTI however is not only effective in protecting the teeth during episodes of bruxism, but is most effective in decreasing the ability to clench with maximum force. This is why the NTI has worked for 1/2 million people world-wide who have suffered from migraine headaches and TMJ pain.

We have had great results with the NTI in our office you can watch a video testimony, of her experience with the NTI and how her migraine headaches were minimized with the NTI on the Aragona Dentistry Facebook Home Page.

80-85% of all conventional braces can today be done with invisable aligner treatment. Invisalign™ is not the only company out there manufacturing clear aligners. Companies like ClearCorrect™ and RWB™ are manufacturing aligners. Invisalign™ has made a trajic decision recently to unilaterally decide "compentance" of dentists performing orthodontics based exclusively on how many cases they submit to their company to manufacture. In other words, the tail is trying to wag the dog. Dentists like myself who have decades of experience in all forms of orthodontics see right through this.

If you would like to see what clear aligner treatment can offer you personally, call our office today to get an idea of what can be done. Prices are coming down and it can be a great time to feel more confident in yourself!

Dental implants are teeth that can look and feel just like your own. A dental implant is an artificial tooth root that is places into the jaw to hold a replacement tooth or bridge. Dental implants are a great way to replace a tooth that has been lost due to periodontal disease, injury or any other reason. Dental implants support a bridge and eliminate the need for a removable partial denture. Dental implants provide support for upper and lower denture, making them more secure and comfortable.

Dental implants are so natural-looking and feeling, you may forget you ever lost a tooth.You know that your confidence about your teeth affects how you feel about yourself, both personally and professionally. You hide your smile because of spaces from missing teeth. Maybe your dentures don't feel secure. Perhaps you have difficulty chewing. If you are missing one or more teeth and would like to smile, speak and eat again with comfort and confidence. Dental implants are teeth that can look and feel just like your own! Under proper conditions, such as placement by a periodontist and diligent patient maintenance, implants can last a lifetime. Long-term studies continue to show improving success rates for implants.

THERE IS GOOD NEWS, WE ARE NOW PLACING IMPLANTS RIGHT IN OUR OFFICE.

The link bellow is a testimony of a patient who recently had an implant place by Dr.Aragona.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQEBcuaIU74

Free consultation to find out if you qualify*
Orthodontic records (photos, impressions and x-rays) a $ 500 value for only $100
All attendees will receive $ 300 off treatment
FREE teeth whitening ( $ 300 value) for all Invisalign patients
An additional $200 off treatment if you refer a friend
special no interest financing as low as $89/month
New Teen Invisalign certified for growing teens as young as 11 years now qualify
check out Irida's recent Invisalign experience at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiGZ0FTLQ7U

Please RSVP for this at:

586-263-4060

*absoultely NO OBLIGATION to find out if you Invisalign works for you.


Yours for an amazing smile,

Sal Aragona DDS MAGD

As we move forward with our blog, we hope to promote dental awareness as a vital part of your healthy lifestyle. Here you will find a variety of articles and topics including dental news, advancements in dental technology and treatment, practical general dental health advice and updates from Dr. Aragona and his staff.

We hope you find our blog to be helpful, engaging and informational to ensure your best dental health. Advise or suggestions discussed in this blog should not be contrued as professional advise for a specific condition in a particular individual. Please seek professional help based upon an actual in person evaluation of your condition.

As always, feel free to contact us with any dental questions or concerns.

This is a picture of what can happen to the teeth of someone who drinks excessive amounts of soda pop. The acid in the soda can actually erode the enamel or the outer layer of the tooth. Unfortunately in today's society soda pop is no longer an occasionally treat but rather has become a daily habit. A steady diet of soda pop is leading to an increase in tooth decay among young and old alike. And don't think you're safe because you only drink diet soda. There is just as much acid in diet soda as there is in regular soda, therefore it is just as damaging too your teeth.

Enamel erosion is caused by the acid attacking the enamel of the tooth. A typical sip of soda will result in an acidic environment for around 20 minutes! Therefore every time you take a sip you bathe your teeth in acid for 20 minutes. Many people will sip on their 20 ounce soda for hours at their desk just think of how much time that is to literally dissolve the outer layer of the teeth. Don't make soda a daily habit and when you do treat yourself to a soda drink it quickly and rinse your mouth with water after to help bring your mouth back to a neutral PH.

Oh and by the way those sports drink that have also become popular with the teens are not any better they can be even more acidic than some of the most popular sodas. Remember it is acid plus sugar that causes decay so try to keep them both to a minimum.

Well here it is the Rotadent is the best toothbrush out there. It is an effective tooth cleaner designed with the same tooth by tooth precision as a professional dental handpiece. Its cleaning action is area specific, designed to clean the hardest to reach areas and the smallest cracks or crevices.

The Rotadent™ system comes with three different types of brush tips, all designed to remove plaque from specific areas and each used in a definite manner. The flat brush tip (hollow cup) is designed to clean tooth surfaces facing your cheeks and lips and tooth surfaces facing your tongue. It's also useful for cleaning plaque on dental implants.The short cone brush tip is designed to clean areas along your gumline and under your gumline. It is also useful for cleaning all biting surfaces of your teeth.The long cone brush tip is designed to clean small or large spaces that may exist between your teeth. It is also terrific for cleaning under your "permanently" cemented bridges.

Some Additional Ideas:

Here are some additional thoughts concerning the Rotadent™: Your system comes with an extra interchangeable arm ( head) which can be used by another family member.

Happy Tooth Cleaning !!!!

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves for the rights of those who are devestated. Speak up and think about their situation defend the rights of the poor and needy." ~ Proverbs 31:8-9 (Sal's Modern Translation)

This verse has particular meaning in that we all have opportunity to speak for those who cannot and seek justice for the poor amoung us.

Check out my recent interview on what these short term missions trips have meant to me over the years.

Sal's Interview

If you find your mouth to be excessively dry start by sipping water more frequently through out the day you may just not be taking in enough fluids. If that doesn't do the trick try chewing sugarless gum or using sugarless lozenges. Avoid acidic or sugary foods and mouth rinses that contain alcohol, if you smoke now is the time to quit as smoking makes the mouth drier. Taking over the counter antihistamines or decongestants can also cause and increase in dryness. Be sure to brush with a fluoridated toothpaste, floss and use a fluoride mouth rinse to help prevent decay and keep the gums healthy. Try adding a room humidifier at night as it can be of great help. There are over the counter saliva substitutes that can also be used. If you think one of your medications may be the culprit let your doctor know, he/she may be able to adjust the dose or even switch you to a different medication. If that is not possible keep these tips in mind to help make living with a dry mouth bearable.

Dental crowns also known as "dental caps" or "tooth caps" can be made from metal, gold or other metal alloys, ceramic materials such as porcelain, or a combination of both. All metal dental crowns. / "Gold" dental crowns.
Some dental crowns are made entirely of metal. The classic metal dental crown is one made of gold, or more precisely a gold alloy. Over the decades a variety of different metal alloys have been used in making dental crowns. Some of these metals are silver in color rather than yellow like gold.
Having a gold dental crown made can be an excellent choice. Here are some reasons why:
A) Because of its physical properties, dentists find gold to be a very workable metal. This characteristic helps a dentist to be able to achieve a very precise fit with the crown.

B) Since they are metal through and through, gold crowns withstand biting and chewing forces well. They will not chip. It would be uncharacteristic for a gold crown to break. Of all of the types of dental crowns, gold crowns probably have the greatest potential for lasting the longest.

C) Although they are very strong, the wear rate of a gold crown is about the same as tooth enamel. This means that a gold dental crown won't create excessive wear on the teeth it opposes (the teeth it bites against). Metal crowns are usually placed on those teeth that are not overly visible when a person smiles (i.e., molars). If you are considering a gold crown take our advice on this point, before you give your dentist the go ahead on making the crown check with your spouse first. They're the one who will be looking at your smile and your new dental crown the most.

Full-porcelain dental crowns.
Some dental crowns are fabricated in a manner where their full thickness is porcelain. These crowns can possess a translucency that makes them the most cosmetically pleasing of all of the different types of dental crowns. Although they can be very life like in appearance, the overall strength of all-porcelain dental crowns is less than other types of crowns. While porcelain crowns were not as strong in the past their strength has improved significantly over the last few years. It has been one of the best ways to improve your smile and have life like teeth.

Some of the advantages of full porcelain crowns:

1. Cosmetic appearance ( very closely resemblance of your own teeth)

2. With metal crowns you can see a dark edge underneath the tooth's gum line however with porcelain crowns you can't because there is not metal.

3. With porcelain crowns you can have translucency and the teeth would look very natural where as with metal crowns there would not be that translucency.

So if you had a choice between crowns that are fused to metal and crowns that are all porcelain wouldn't you choose the one resembles your own teeth more closely. FULL PORCELAIN CROWNS IS THE WAY!!

Snap-On Smile™ is a patent method for those situations where your not sure of doing anything irreversable and totally non-invasive to wear a smile change you'd like to live with for a while. It is a dental devise in which is fabricated to fit over your existing teeth to change shapes, color, appearance and facial support to help you in any cosmetic decision you make about your current condition. And if your honest, you may be one of nearly 50% of us are not completely happy with our smiles. This effects everything from your self confidence to relationships to just about everything that you value in your life. So we have made this very easy, no shots, not drilling on your teeth and time that you need to see the difference this may make in your life.

Why wait, call us to discuss this amazing option! 586-263-4060

or do you have notches at the gum line?

Take a close look if you have either of these conditions in your mouth you are probably clenching or grinding your teeth without even knowing it. There are things that you can do to protect your teeth and your jaw joints from the enormous pressure you are putting on them but you need to ask your dentist which is right for you. Putting off asking increases the amount of irreversible damage that is done so don't wait if you even think it's possible that you are a secret grinder. In fact if you are not sure the next time you are in the office ask! The teeth you save will be your own.

Progressive inflammation of tissues in the central nervous system, resulting in degeneration of nerve cells, is thought to play a role in the development of dementia.1 Epidemiologic studies suggest that persons with high levels of systemic inflammatory markers, such as C-reactive protein and pro-inflammatory cytokines, are at higher risk of dementia than those with lower levels. In addition, use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) may lower the risk of dementia. There are many potential sources of chronic inflammation, including periodontal diseases. Periodontal diseases are among the most prevalent diseases affecting the population. Among adults, 75% have a mild form (gingivitis), and approximately 40% have moderate or severe periodontitis.

Within the past several years, an increasing number of studies have reported associations between oral health status and measures of impaired cognition in community-dwelling older adults.2-7 In the U.S. National Health and Examination Surveys (NHANES) conducted in 1988-1994 and in 2001-2002,2-4 participants underwent cognitive testing to measure memory, response speed, attention, and coordination. Persons with lower scores on these cognitive tests were more likely to have a greater extent of sites with attachment loss and probing pocket depth, or lack teeth altogether, compared to persons with higher scores. In addition, individuals with high serum levels of antibody to P. gingivalis, a common periodontal bacterium, performed poorly on verbal recall and subtraction tasks.2 Other studies found lack of teeth was associated with poor cognitive function5,6 and higher incidence of dementia.7 In the current study, increased risk of cognitive impairment was independently related to number of teeth lost and progression of periodontal disease during a 32-year follow-up.

Since all of these studies have been observational, it cannot be determined yet if periodontal disease directly causes or worsens cognitive impairment, or what biologic mechanisms are responsible for the associations. Several mechanisms have been proposed and are the focus of current research.

Periodontal disease as a source of inflammatory factors

Periodontitis is a chronic condition that exposes a patient to pro-inflammatory factors over the long term. Periodontal pathogens that accumulate in plaque on the teeth secrete lipopolysaccharide, an endotoxin that activates macrophages to produce pro-inflammatory cytokines. In turn, these cytokines enter the circulation and induce the host response through several pathways. In addition, the bacteria themselves and their components can gain access to the systemic circulation and invade non-oral tissues. Thus, bacteria and inflammatory mediators that originate in the oral cavity may contribute to and enhance inflammatory processes in the brain that increase the risk of dementia.

Periodontal disease as a marker for underlying inflammatory processes that lead to cognitive impairment

The association between periodontal disease and cognitive impairment may also reflect an indirect biologic mechanism in which periodontitis and dementia are two separate disease outcomes that arise from an underlying chronic inflammation. Both diseases have several common risk factors that can influence the immune system and enhance inflammation, including smoking, depression, and diabetes. In both periodontitis and dementia, specific genotypes of the interleukin family of cytokines have been associated with increased disease risk and led to the hypothesis that some individuals have a hyper-inflammatory response phenotype. A number of diseases with an inflammatory component -- cardiovascular disease, diabetes, periodontal disease, and dementia -- might then tend to cluster in individuals with such a phenotype.

Dr. Elizabeth (Krall) Kaye is a professor and director of the epidemiology division in the Department of Health Policy & Health Services Research at Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine. Her research focuses on the association of skeletal bone density to tooth retention in the elderly, genetic and environmental influences on bone and teeth, and smoking cessation. She holds an MPH and PhD from the University of Pittsburgh.

References

1. Kamer AR, Craig RG, Dasanayake AP, Brys M, Glodzik-Sobanska L, deLeon MJ. Inflammation and Alzheimer's disease: possible role of periodontal diseases. Alzheimer's Dementia 2008; 4:242-250.

2. Noble JM, Borrell LN, Papapanou PN, Elkind MSV, Scarmeas N, Wright CB. Periodontitis is associated with cognitive impairment among older adults: analysis of NHANES-III. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2009; 80:1206-1211.

3. Stewart R, Sabbah W, Tsakos G, D'Aiuto F, Watt RG. Oral health and cognitive function in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). Psychosomat Med 2008; 70:936-941.

4. Yu YH, Kuo HK. Association between cognitive function and periodontal disease in older adults. J Amer Geriatrics Soc 2008; 56:1693-1697.

5. Stewart R, Hirani V. Dental health and cognitive impairment in an English National Survey Population. J Amer Geriatric Soc 2007; 55:1410-1414.

6. Grabe HJ, Schwahn C, Völzke H, et al. Tooth loss and cognitive impairment. J Clin Periodontol 2009; 36:550-557.

7. Sparks Stein P, Desrosiers M, Donegan SJ, et al. Tooth loss, dementia, and neuropathology in the Nun Study. J Amer Dent Assoc 2007; 138:1314-1322.

Plaque removal is essental for a healthy, beautiful smile, the accumilation of plaque on teeth can lead to gingivitis (gum inflammation) or other conditions such as periodontitis (gum and bone disease). The Rota-Dent provides a choice of 3 different brush tips depending on the specific cleaning needs. The Rota-Dent is not like any other mechanical toothbrushes, with true rotary action and patented microfilament technology are the reasons the Rota-Dent is more effective in plaqu removal than a manual or any other mechanical toothbrushes and its also twice as fast. You can use the Rota-Dent with or without toothbrush. Also a regular tooth prush will only clean the smmoth surfaces of the teeth, and will not clean in between, or the small grooves and pit of your teeth and gun disease and tooth decay starts in those areas.

Clincial studies have show the value of the Rota-Dent in controlling dental plaque, reducing stains, reducing bleeding gums, and cleaning braces and implants. Clincial studies also show that the Rota-Dent helps control dental plaque and inflimmation associated with gingivitis. These studies have proven that The Rota-Dent is effective in removing plaque and controlling gum disease. Therefore, the Rota-Dent will help prevent premature failure to crowns, bridges and partials.

If you are ready to switch to a toothbrush that is more effective at cleaning your teeth, feel free to give us a call or ask on your next appointment.