Family Dental Practice welcomes every generation of your family by offering a comprehensive mix of dental services under one compassionate, convenient roof. Whether your age is 1 or 101, your Watertown dentists and team are here to help!
Contact us today for an appointment.
Oral hygiene is where every person’s dental journey begins, whether it’s in everyday life and during their visits to our office. Brushing and flossing each day set the table for strong, healthy smiles, and two hygiene visits each year add professional checkups and cleanings to top those smiles off with a flourish. Family Dental Practice is also proud to offer laser cleanings, which are appreciated by patients who dislike the sounds and sensations of traditional polishing and drilling. (Can you believe we haven’t heard one single person say they missed those noises?)
Gum disease is infection of the tissues holding your teeth in place, usually caused by poor oral hygiene habits that have allowed bad bacteria called plaque to build up and harden on the teeth. The earliest stage of gum disease is gingivitis, which is when you’ll see your gums bleed when brushing your teeth. Stepping up your oral hygiene routine is enough to improve gum health at this point. When gum disease becomes more advanced, Family Dental Practice may recommend scaling and root planing, a deep cleaning method to bring your gums back to health and prevent bone loss.
Gum disease has three stages: gingivitis, periodontitis, and advanced periodontitis. Once gum disease has reached the second stage, it is already irreversible, but can still be managed. As gum disease progresses, pockets between teeth deepen, causing the gums to recede and expose more of the tooth roots. Your Watertown dentists offer gum recession treatment with gum grafting, which protects tooth roots and can save teeth from extraction. We’ll do everything we can to help you keep healthy natural teeth. If you’re concerned about your gums, let us know—there’s always hope for your smile!
Are you dealing with receding gums? Are your teeth sensitive? If so, you’re not alone. Teeth grinding and clenching (bruxism) and the body’s natural aging process are just two of the factors that can lead to gum recession, which can cause tooth sensitivity and even tooth loss. Fortunately for our patients, Dr. Buchholtz recently became certified in the sweetly named “Gum Drop Technique” (GDT), a minimally invasive procedure that lightly lifts the gums into the correct position, protecting tooth roots and using natural growth factors from the patient’s own blood to take full advantage of healing properties that are already present. Ask us about GDT today!
With the grim reality of one person losing their battle with oral cancer every hour in this country, Family Dental Practice has joined the fight against the disease. Every routine adult hygiene appointment with us includes oral cancer screening, as early detection and diagnosis is the most effective way to beat the condition. The number-one risk factor for oral cancer is HPV (human papillomavirus), which affects approximately 79 million American adults. While alcohol and tobacco use remain major risk factors for oral cancer, HPV remains the leading cause in the United States.
Get in touch with Family Dental Practice today.
Over 250,000 teeth are saved each year by wearing mouthguards during contact sports play and practice, but at least two million teeth are still lost by those playing without. Potential injuries to the jaw, face, neck and head as well as the teeth and gums can be alleviated by wearing a mouthguard. Dr. Buchholtz and Dr. Garro want all our Watertown athletes to keep their head in the game, so let us help protect their smiles with a custom-fit sports mouthguard!
Family Dental Practice also makes custom-fit nightguards to reduce the effects of teeth grinding and clenching, or sleep bruxism. Sleep bruxism is a common condition affecting about 10% of the population, according to the American Sleep Association®, and it can cause severe tooth wear, jaw and facial pain, tooth sensitivity, and other problems. If you suspect you have bruxism and would like to enjoy more restful sleep, ask our team if a nightguard might be right for you.
Dental sealants act as a barrier to prevent the formation of cavities. They consist of a plastic material that is applied to the teeth with a brush, most frequently to the chewing surfaces of the back molars that are the most decay-prone areas of the mouth. Sealants are so named because they “seal out” plaque and food. Application is easy and quick and can usually be accomplished in a single appointment. Developing tooth decay begins early in life, so sealants are often recommended for children and teenagers, but adults can benefit from sealants as well.
Get everyone in on the same day!
Your Watertown dentists welcome your kids from the age of one year on up. Oral hygiene is important from the day kids are born, and baby teeth are essential to their healthy development, assisting with speech and eating. Oral hygiene for kids includes health education—we try to make it fun and interesting for the whole family. We discussed sealants above, and we often recommend them to keep kids’ molars healthy and intact. Family Dental Practice can also perform pulpectomy and pulpotomy—the pediatric version of root canal—to remove infection from and save those fundamental baby teeth.
*Dr. Buchholtz and Dr. Garro are general dentists performing pediatric dentistry services.
Family Dental Practice is on-call after hours to address our patients’ dental emergencies. If you or someone in your family experiences a dental emergency, please contact our office right away. If the office is open when your problem arises, we will try to accommodate you during that business day. If you experience a dental emergency outside of office hours, call us and we’ll advise you what to do next. Here is a handy list of tips to help you in the event of a dental emergency. Taking these precautions could mean the difference between saving and losing your tooth.
With extended office hours we can find an appointment time that works with your busy schedule. We are also available for emergency appointments on the weekends. We offer comprehensive dental care in the office to include orthodontics, dental implants, cosmetic dentistry, pediatric care and more. Don’t wait to take care of your oral health, contact us today for an appointment.
