Brushing your teeth for a full two minutes twice a day is extremely important. My kids have been known to go into the bathroom, “brush”, and return to their activity in less than 30 seconds. Either I’m raising the world’s fastest thorough toothbrushers, or I have extremely lazy kids sometimes when it comes to toothbrushing. I’ll let you decide.
When my kids were really little, my husband or I would brush their teeth for them. Sometimes it was a struggle, sometimes it went well. Every time we brushed their teeth, though, we couldn’t wait until they could brush on their own. Eventually, we would sit and watch the kids brush their teeth, making sure they were not missing any areas or cutting their brushing time too short. Over the years we’ve tried using a timer, singing the alphabet multiple times, counting slowly to 100 and other tactics to achieve proper brushing times. Now, at 12, 13 and 15, we let them brush on their own, expecting them to do a proper job. Their dad’s a dentist for goodness sake! I do have to say in their defense, their tooth brushing skills have greatly improved over the years.
The Jugovich kids at about 1, 2 and 4 years old.
For kids, learning to brush all their teeth correctly is sometimes a daunting task. It’s so easy for them to scrub the chewing surfaces of their teeth and their front teeth quickly, feeling as though they’ve done a smashing job. What about brushing the inside surfaces of their teeth close to the roof of their mouth and their tongue? Or brushing the tooth surfaces next to their cheeks? Or brushing their tongue? Those are all important areas to brush.
The best way to teach kids (or adults!) to properly brush their teeth is to start in one quadrant, or area, spending a good 30 seconds brushing all over – top, bottom, inside and outside. For instance, after the upper right teeth are brushed for 30 seconds, move onto the upper left, then down to the lower left, next on to the lower right, and finally the tongue. It really doesn’t matter where they begin, just that 30 seconds is spent on each of the four main areas of the mouth, plus a little extra time for the tongue.
Jack REALLY needed to brush his tongue this day!
Remember parents, kids learn from you too. Let your kids watch you brush your teeth. A lively toothbrushing contest, or brushing your teeth at the same time, is always fun. Leading by example is a powerful form of teaching.
Goofing around and getting ready to brush our teeth.
If attention is an issue, there is a website that plays cute videos designed to help keep your child focused on brushing for a full 2 minutes. Here’s a link to the website 2min2x.org. I actually recommended this website to my sister recently for my little 2 year old niece. I also found another link to a YouTube video that is engaging and colorful. This Blippi video is a hoot and demonstrates toothbrushing for kids. If you cruise the internet, there is a plethora of great information and videos to help maintain attention while brushing.
Another idea to ensure dentist recommended brushing time is to set a timer. I found fun timers for sale at retail stores and on Amazon. I found simple two-minute timers that look a lot like the sand timers in games like Scrabble. A timer on a smartphone would work to track your child’s brushing time too. There are also cute and inexpensive battery powered toothbrushes with timers included in them for children. These can be purchased at retail stores for usually less than $10.
The more fun you make proper tooth brushing, the more fun it becomes for your child. Instilling the skills to help take care of a child’s teeth early is key to preventing tooth decay. Give your little one the skills early to maintain a beautiful and healthy smile his or her entire life.
Written and submitted by Stephanie Jugovich, mom to 3 kids and employee at Pike Lake Dental Center
Another change our office made some time ago, was the switch to digital x-ray. Prior to that, we used films that left us blind as to our success until that film took a five minute ride through the automatic processor. Now we see our results instantly! And speaking of the automatic processor -the old AT-2000- it was a machine that was filled with 
chemicals that needed changing on a regular basis, and the chemicals required special testing and disposal. It was also filled with a series of rollers and gears to carry the films through the chemicals. With all those moving parts, as you can imagine, it broke down on a regular basis. Needless to say, we don’t miss it, and are loving our updated equipment. In addition to digital bitewing x-rays, we also have a digital panorex, or full mouth machine. This machine can also take 3-D images to help Dr. Matt and Dr. Meaghan in some procedures they perform, such as dental implants.
it in plaster, heating it to melt the wax, and then melting a gold alloy, and casting it by putting it into a hand-spun centrifuge to force the gold into the mold! Super cool and crafty, but a ton of work … not to mention that it was time away from patients! Now, although there are occasional reasons to send out for a lab crown or bridge, most are done in-office and are typically completed within 1 1/2 hours! AND, beyond that, our office is trained and equipped to offer dental implants!
for appointment times for our patients. As you might expect, after six plus months of flipping through them, adding and erasing names, the pages became quite tattered! I also remember when it was time to move the scheduling to the computer. It would be so much more tidy and efficient to schedule this way! Our receptionist, however, was not convinced! The thought of all those patients helplessly floating in a computer instead of being safe in a book in front of her was daunting! I swear to you, it was like a child giving up a pacifier! The switch was made, and it did, indeed, prove to be just as tidy and efficient as promised … most days!
Gone are the days of hand writing insurance claims and trying to read patients’ accounts off a tiny microfiche that might be a month behind in it’s information. Our computer system keeps staff quite up to date to answer patient questions. Gone, also, are the days of calling every 
patient (which, currently, could easily be up to 50 individuals, or more) to remind them of their upcoming visit. Patients are phoned automatically, as well as having the option of an email or text message.We have also gone “paperless” with patient files. It definitely does not mean less work … I can vouch for this … but, again, it is a much more efficient and secure way to manage our patients’ information!
Written by Deb Trethewey, RDH at Pike Lake Dental Center
When I travel, though, I leave my electric toothbrush at home. When packing for a family vacation for 5 people, every ounce up to that dreaded 50# weight limit matters. I don’t want to sacrifice any more real estate in our suitcases than absolutely necessary, so I opt for a lightweight and easily packable standard issue toothbrush from the dental office. It never fails – by the third day of a week-long trip, my teeth just don’t feel quite as clean. Is it my overly dentally-aware mind playing tricks on me? Possibly.
If you’re in the market for an electric toothbrush, Pike Lake Dental Center does sell an incredible electric toothbrush package. The kit includes the rechargeable electric toothbrush, multiple brush heads, a carrying case, charging port, toothpaste, mouthwash, and more. This toothbrush is so smart it can connect to your smartphone via bluetooth to help ensure you
First is the implant itself. This is the part that, as Wikipedia says, interfaces with the bone of the patient’s jaw. The dental implants we use today are made of titanium. Through a process called osseointegration, the implant will form an intimate bond with the patient’s bone, which anchors it in place. Most times, the implants’ shapes and sizes are designed to mimic the root of the tooth it is replacing. Implants typically have a tapered, threaded design which allows for accurate and stable placement. Dental implants also have a special coating or treatment on their surfaces that help them integrate with the jaw bone.
This is the intermediary part that joins the crown, bridge or denture to the implant. The abutment interfaces with the implant with very precise machined surfaces and is often held in place with a screw through its center. The screw is then tightened to a specific setting using a special torque wrench. The implant abutment serves as the transition piece from the implant through the gum tissue to the final restoration.
times an individual crown or bridge and is held to the implant abutment by cement. Once the cement is cured, the restoration (crown or bridge) is then ready for normal use. Most times these components are fixed, or are anchored, permanently in a patient’s mouth. The crown or bridge will not need to be removed.
Center, for more on dental implants. In future blogs, we will try to shed more light on the process of placing a dental implant and some of the more frequently asked questions.