The cabalistically alluring smile of lady Mona Lisa remains a mystery, but French scientists say they have cracked a few secrets of the famous painting. Researchers at The Louvre have studied seven of the museum’s Leonardo da Vinci paintings, including the Mona Lisa, to analyze the master’s use of successive ultrathin layers of paint and glaze – a technique that gave his works their soft and sensual quality.

Specialists from the Center for Research and Restoration of the Museums of France found that da Vinci painted up to 30 layers of paint and glaze on his works to achieve astonishingly high levels of subtlety. Added up, all the layers are less than 40 micrometers, or about half the thickness of a human hair, researcher Philippe Walter said Friday. The technique is called “sfumato,” and it allowed da Vinci to give outlines and contours a hazy quality (creating an illusion of depth and shadow). The technique’s use is well-known, but scientific study on it has been limited because, until the advent of advanced laser technology, tests required actual samples from the paintings.

Just as Leonardo da Vinci used the sfumato technique to intricately layer paint and glaze (creating beautiful works of art), a master artist uses similar techniques of layering porcelain powder to create realistic dental restorations. Dr. Sun chooses from approximately 30 different shades of porcelain powder, which are layered to create the illusion of a natural tooth. The result is an extremely high quality restoration, indistinguishable from an organically created tooth. It is important to note that the vast majority of porcelain technicians use only a few rudimentary shades of porcelain powder, resulting in a mediocre restoration which may look slightly artificial.

When searching for a cosmetic dentist, look for samples of his or her team’s work! Cosmetic dentists rely on an integrated team of clinical and laboratory experts to assist in creating lifelike porcelain restorations. Realistic shade and color should be present, not one solid shade of white. If possible, see how the restoration illuminates (how the tooth looks in natural sunlight) – is there a shift, like a natural tooth? Find a master artist who can provide you with the smile of your dreams. If you need a resource to find a cosmetic dentist in your area, the American Academy for Cosmetic Dentistry provides a search tool to find accredited AACD cosmetic dentists in your area.

The new teeth in the dino would grow directly beneath the existing teeth, similar to how our permanent teeth develop beneath our baby teeth. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a replacement tooth grow automatically whenever we have a problem?!

Earlier this year, researcher and long-famed paleontologist Jack Horner  had uncovered “B. Rex,” a 68-million year old T-Rex that is giving the academic community a lot to think about, both relating to dinosaurs and to the use of tooth material (and other mineral matter) in fossils. Through a special process of acid dissolution of ancient dino bones, organic material – blood vessels – were extracted and found in near-fresh condition!

“[We] dissolved away pieces of an even older dinosaur – a well-preserved 80-million-year-old duckbill – in acid, and again, found what appear to be blood vessels.” With this matter, new creatures could be genetically grown that had fallen extinct millions of years ago – a dino zoo even! What is interesting about dinosaur teeth however is that they illustrate how versatile teeth are in Earth’s many different life forms.

Humans obviously use their teeth for tearing, chewing and start the process of digesting food; speech and aesthetic purposes are also served by our teeth. Although we only have two sets of natural teeth, we can artificially create new teeth with implant dentistry. Other creatures have no teeth, like ducks and geese, which simply use their bill to seek out food and begin the digestion process.

The systematic replacement of old or broken teeth in dinosaurs is what’s driving research that will hopefully, in the future, result in human teeth being grown for human tooth replacement. Imagine being able to have a real, natural and healthy tooth installed in your mouth!

T-Rex tooth - it's replaceable!

Current technology, like existing biocompatible metals (such as titanium) are used to replace human parts like hip bones. Biocompatible  titanium is used for dental implant fixture, replacing a tooth’s root being implanted in the jaw bone. Porcelain restorations are then attached to the artificial titanium root after proper healing of the jaw bone.

It is also important to remember that not all dental implant restorations are made due to improper oral care or an irresponsible lifestyle! More and more people are being born with congenitally missing  teeth, which can cause surrounding teeth to become misaligned, a possible evolutionary trend. Early diagnosis always makes the restoration process easier.

Though technology is constantly evolving, and may at one point completely replace the need for artificial dental restorations, it is of the utmost importance to try and take care of what you have! A person’s original, natural teeth are always the healthiest and most desirable option.

The most commonly challenging dental dilemma for baby boomers is combating those dull and severely worn teeth. Many people are unaware of the slow aging process of loosing tooth structures, mainly from night grinding, erosion and attrition. Bad habits and poor hygiene can also ruin teeth. The approach to rejuvenate can be as simple as having your teeth whitened, or it could be more complicated, requiring a multidisciplinary approach with extensive time and financial investment needed.

Often times, porcelain veneers might be suggested by your cosmetic dental professional to restore an aging smile, but make sure your dental health has been evaluated first. It is pertinent to check whether or not the gum and bone tissues are healthy, if there are any missing teeth that haven’t yet been replaced and if any shifting bite or teeth issues have been addressed. If you have had prior cosmetic work done, however, maintaining your investment is vital if you want your new smile to last. Follow up any cosmetic procedure with proper hygiene habits, which include brushing and flossing twice daily (and after meals), a healthy diet, no smoking and no excessive drinking (sodas or alcohol). A night guard might also be recommended.

Baby boomers have worked hard to establish their careers, family and personal well-being – now it’s time to enjoy more of your accomplishments. Get the smile you’ve always wanted, as it’s not only for vanity but also truly for your overall health.  Visit your dental professional not only for a routine cleaning and check up, but ask for a comprehensive cosmetic evaluation, including a smile analysis, TMJ and occlusion check and a periodontal exam with an oral cancer screening. When you take care of your mouth, you are taking care of a vital bodily system which performs in delicate balance with the rest of your body. When your oral cavity’s health is at risk, your overall health is being endangered.

Baby teeth can easily become compromised by bacteria lingering in a young child’s mouth – and if not treated quickly, can decay away in matter of weeks. In many cases, the poor child not only suffers from toothaches, but during the first dental visit an unpleasant memory association of the dentist’s office can develop subconsciously. If your dental professional notes that a severely decayed baby tooth needs a root canal (followed with baby tooth crown), don’t panic – this routine procedure is vital if the tooth is fully compromised! In this situation, the frustrations, the lengthy processes and the expenses might lead to the thinking “why bother with all the work, why not just pull the unhealthy baby teeth?” If the infected baby tooth is left untreated, not only will it lead to a unhappy child, it can also affect the permanent tooth lying below the unhealthy baby tooth.

By the time your child reaches age 2, he or she should have 20 deciduous teeth, as permanent teeth start to grow in around age 5 1/2 to 6. The lower front baby teeth are the first to exfoliate, replaced by permanent teeth. At the same time, permanent molars also emerge behind the baby molars. This process continues as baby teeth fall out, visits are paid from the tooth fairy and new teeth erupt through the gum, a memory in every child! The last set of baby teeth eventually exfoliate around age 12, to be replaced by permanent bicuspids. Even if your child’s baby teeth are not be in the best condition, they serve an important role in addition to chewing and speech function – baby teeth maintain necessary space in the jaw bone for permanent teeth to grow in.

If a child looses a baby tooth too early, the jaw bone misses out on functional stimulation by not holding up by the baby tooth. The consecutive permanent tooth will be affected and will not develop nor align properly. It is for this reason that baby teeth cannot be simply pulled in the event of a cavity. If a baby tooth is lost early, placing a space maintainer will hold the jaw dimension at its original measure, ensuring the proper development of permanent teeth. Take proper care in maintaining baby teeth – they may be short lived, but the effect and influence of deciduous teeth are life long and shouldn’t be overlooked.

If you are planning on having any elective cosmetic work done, make sure your physician is familiar with different cosmetic options and has a good training background. The most common cosmetic dentistry problems can be prevented if you do your homework, including unsatisfactory cosmetic outcomes or clinical and technical shortcomings! These problems can lead to a not so happy nor healthy smile, altered speech, gum irritation, increased tooth sensitivity , chipping, loose teeth and even breakage of porcelain (from insufficient bonds between natural teeth and porcelain veneers from an overly trimmed tooth structure or bite issue). These errors end up needing additional work (like crowns, root canals or gum surgery) and can be painful and infuriating.

It is important when considering any kind of cosmetic work – dentistry or otherwise – that you evaluate your own needs, and knowing your own health as a foundation for your own future.  The consequences of only looking at cosmetic dental procedures without the health side can put your long term oral health at risk.  If you have a fairly healthy mouth with well-aligned teeth, it may be easier to get satisfactory cosmetic results with the average cosmetic dentist . If you have seriously mis-aligned teeth, gum disease or lots of dental work / TMJ problems (or are prone to cavities), you have a much more sensitive oral cavity and must be very careful with who you choose to be your cosmetic dentist. Also, you may require multiple steps in order to attain a healthy, long lasting result.

It is also important to have a well thought-out plan before the procedures starts as good communication with your cosmetic dentist and technician is key. Not only is it necessary to be able to convey your desires clearly, but it is also best to go through the proper diagnostic steps to analyze the problem, plan the treatment scientifically with a mock-up or wax-up procedure and set up the detailed 3-D blueprint of your smile makeover before proceeding with dental reconstruction work. Make sure your dentist and ceramist are well experienced by asking other patients what kind of work you can expect and by checking into his or her credentials, education and training background (www.aacd.com is a good reference site).  Look at pictures of past cases the dentist has worked on, and get a feel of what kind of sincerity and caring attitude the dental team will be able to provide you, in order to help make your important decision. Make sure you ask questions about what will make the procedure a long term success before proceeding the work.

It is a wonderful thing to have a great smile, but maintaining it will be just important. Proper home care and regular professional check-ups are musts – proper diet and healthy habits will keep your smile beautiful for a long time! Finally, wear a night guard if you are prone to bruxism as they can help maintain the structure of your oral system.

It is only natural to be curious about what teeth are made of and how they function within our mouth. The root anchors the tooth below the gum’s surface into the jaw bone, while the crown of the tooth extends out past the gum. The outermost hard shiny layer of the tooth is called enamel, and is the hardest substance in the body and functions as a food grinder. 92- 96% of enamel consists of minerals (hydroxyapatite, a phosphate and calcium salt) with the remaining part being water and organic material .

Lying just beneath the hard, shiny enamel surface of every tooth is the dentin layer. This layer of the tooth is composed mainly of calcified bony-like tissue (mostly hydroxylapatite), and like bone it contains collagen, water and other organic components (and is soft in consistency). Throughout the dentin layer are tiny passageways into the deep pulpal layer, connected to the enamel layer – these passages are known as tubules. Unlike enamel, dentin continues to modify throughout a person’s entire life. Dentin can grow or reform in response to a change in tooth conditions, such as tooth decay or attrition.

The innermost layer of the tooth is known as the pulpal layer. This inner sanctum of every tooth consists of nerves and blood vessels.  This pulp benefits the teeth in several ways: primarily, the pulp keeps the organic components of the teeth healthy and properly supplied with moisture and nutrients. The pulp also conduces senses such as heat, cold and trauma from the teeth into the body’s nervous system.

The important thing to remember about your tooth structure is that it is subject to change – when bacteria and other substances (like alcohol, smoke or even sugary liquid) is introduced into your oral environment, prompt cleaning (with a toothbrush and floss) is necessary to prevent premature decay. Once decay passes through the enamel layer into the dentin, decay will progress rapidly, even when not easily detectable from visual inspection. Only when the enamel has caved in and broken down does a cavity become visible. If the cavity was not treated early and the underlying dentin layer has already decayed (which can actually extend deep into the pulpal tissue), root canal therapy may be necessary, requiring a post and crown to restore the tooth. Ultimately, prevention is the best solution. Proper home care and regular dental check-ups can detect problems early, and are usually fixed easily.

Gold fillings are removed

You might have never thought about it, but gold fillings, bridges and other gold dental work is actually worth some money in today’s economy! Gold is one of the few precious metals which has held its value, and many people with scrap fillings lying around the house are turning to jewelers to get money for their gold dental work! They can sell for $30 to $50.

In our office, when offered remaining gold scrap when a patient has old dental work removed, 25% of people say they would like to keep the gold. Some people have these gold teeth lying around, and if you fall under this category, it might be time to change the gold dental scrap to good use. Gold does not corrode in the harsh oral environment, and because of this, it has been a suitable restorative material choice for decades (even though in more recent years, the trend has been towards composite or porcelain material which looks natural against other real teeth). Still, there is plenty dental gold work even today, and even porcelain crowns can be supported with dental gold alloy. While dental gold is usually 12 to 16 karat, not 24 karat, it still fetches a high resale value, up to $900 per ounce in today’s economy! The gold must be treated chemically to remove other metallic substances, but this can be easily done by the jeweler you sell your scrap gold to.

There is one shocking fact you learn from this dental gold rush story – the base tooth is actually separated from the gold cap with your cola drink. Cola is no stranger to criticism from the dental world, its acidic properties can erode your enamel and gum (and even lead to bone loss!) and can wreak havoc in your mouth.  If you soak the tooth in a cup of cola for 24-48 hours, the gold cap will separate from the tooth and will be ready for scrapping. Doesn’t this fact make you think twice about drinking cola? The best way to fight recession is get into prevention, take good care of yourself! When you’re healthy, it’s much easier to be productive and move ahead. Let your mouth be your asset instead of liability starting with proper home care and stay away from bad habits and poor diets.

Root canal therapy (also known as endodontic therapy) is a procedure of treatment for the pulp of a tooth once it has become infected – the inner pulpal material  must be removed, in order to protect and decontaminate the tooth from future microbial invasion to the jaw bone. Once a root canal procedure is performed, however, the lack of nutritional supply in the tooth (once the organic tissue is removed from the tooth during the procedure) will render the tooth brittle, the weakened tooth should be reinforced and restored properly, with a post and crown.

Root canal treatment does have a bad reputation due to the pain and the stigma associated with the procedure. Often times, a patient will have a root canal performed and think the procedure was a success, only to have pain and infection return several years down the line. The complexity of the anatomic root variation could be an obstacle and techniques can often be tedious, which is why specialized service is usually performed by a highly trained dentist or endodontist. Special tools like microscopes are also often necessary for a successful procedure. Advanced instrumentation and technique will ensure long-term success.

Regular dental checkups are vital to properly maintain your dental health. If the unhealthy dental condition requires a root canal treatment or an extraction, have your dental professional explain the pros and cons of each option, then make an educated decision. If there is a mystery pain, a 3-D image (Morita Survey of CT scan) would be invaluable for proper diagnosis. Regular dental x-rays are not capable of capturing images of a cracked tooth nor accessory root canals (which are small and difficult to see). These tiny cracks or canal issues can lead to prolonged discomfort, which you may have thought was a figment of your imagination! If the prognosis was poor, or a tooth has broken down so much that it has become unrestorable, extraction and a dental implant might be a more sustainable investment to you dental health.  Prevention is always the best treatment! Brush and floss your teeth twice daily and after meals. If you have any dental pain, schedule an appointment with your dentist sooner rather than later.

Before Lengthening:

After Lengthening:

Your teeth are secured to your jaw via root structures that extend from the teeth into jaw bone. This bone is protected by the gums,  which extends down over the top of the tooth root structure. Excess gum tissue poses no health risk, but can be unsightly and make your teeth look tiny or not as harmony with your face. Aesthetic crown lengthening remedies this condition by trimming away excess gum (and in some cases bone), reducing the amount of display of gum and lengthening the visible crown of the tooth. Gingival (gum) contouring (like a gingival plasty or soft tissue crown lengthening) refers to trimming of the gum tissue only. Most crown lengthenings refer to the recontouring of both the gum and supporting bone (osseous crown lengthening), when there is more length of the tooth is desired.

Traditionally, crown lengthening is performed with scalpel and mechanical rotary tool which trim and flap open the gum also trim away some bone tissue. This mechanical force results unfavorable inflammatory response of the periodontal tissues  and taking up to 8 weeks to heal. The tissue must fully heal before restorations can take place. This procedure is often daunting to many patients!

Thankfully, new technology in the laser dentistry field has made aesthetic crown lengthening much easier and less invasive. By using a small fiber optic tip,  laser energy can be manipulated to trim or ablate away  tissues , disturbing the surrounding environment much less than traditional mechanical rotary instruments. The less invasive procedure means less pain, quicker healing and less trauma. The body does not react violently to laser treatment as it does blunt mechanical treatment!and often time the restorative work can be initiate quickly or even at the same visit. In some cases,  crown lengthening alone can  get you desirable bigger smile,but often time , the restorative work like bonding, veneers or crowns are called for the needed improvement or protection on dental structure.

When gingival contouring or  crown lengthening is performed – but left with a compromised biological width (2 to 3mm is necessary for safe formation of a protective zone from the gum border to the bone) -  gum tissue will stay inflammed and  grow back after several months. It is important to have an experienced dental professional for proper diagnosis before getting your gum trimmed. Find a dental professional who been properly trained using lasers for a more comfortable surgical experience (www. Laserdentistry.org). The design of the smile and the shaping of the gum line both need an aesthetic touch (apart from solid surgical technique), so it is equally important for  the dental professional  have aesthetic background to assure the best aesthetic result (www. aacd.com).

What are the causes of missing teeth? Congenital missing teeth (teeth which never formed), severely broken down and non-restorable teeth due to dental diseases, lack of supporting bone for teeth due to advanced gum disease and physical trauma from a serious mouth injury are all common reasons. Once you do loose a tooth, your oral environment is severely affected! Besides smile-phobia, speech impairment for missing front teeth, diet complications (in which you can’t properly bite and chew food – especially with foods rich in fiber which require a good set of teeth to digest), and bite force can all be severely affected. Shift and tilt on existing teeth when the jaw exerts pressure lead to uneven loading creates jaw tension and possible accelerated wear and tear of the teeth. Additionally, tilted and shifted teeth make it more difficult to clean , which can lead to tooth decay and gum disease.

Thankfully, dentistry has greatly advanced in recent times, and you do have multiple treatment options for a missing tooth! If just one tooth is missing, dental implants are a great option which can replace the missing tooth without affecting the adjacent teeth, and preserve the bone as well. Dental implants are made of bio-compatible titanium, which are surgically placed into the jaw to preplace the missing root structure. Then, a post and crown is built on top of the implant. Other options include a dental bridge, which needs capping (a crown) of neighboring teeth to help support the artificial tooth replacing the missing one. It is stationary and feels natural (if made properly), but connected teeth need a special tool for flossing. Full or partial dentures are generally the least expensive treatment option, especially if many or all of a person’s teeth are missing. This option involves false teeth being set into a plastic base, which fits over your gums.

What will be the best treatment option for you? Please consult with your dental professional, the sooner the better!