Health Trends in Dentistry

Name: Marissa Nimmer

I spoke to Wayne Jenson who is a Dentist who owns his own practice. He gave me five trends that have, especially recently, become very popular and better known to people.

1.     Focus on good oral hygiene from a young age

As we advance and learn about health, we have found that if you begin at a young age to take care of your mouth that it will be easier to maintain those good habits and keep your teeth healthy. Rather than fixing damaged teeth, dentistry has found that by marketing, advertising, and promoting ideas to parents about teaching their kids at a young age is easier to do. Before the idea of prevention, dentists had to fix problems that over time had grown so bad and sometimes were becoming unable to fix. Through these new ideas though and by teaching kids at a young age the importance of oral hygiene, there has been a significant decrease in the major problems occurring with teeth.

2.     Diagnostics/Advances in technology

Advances in technology are affecting and will continue to more dramatically affect the practice of dentistry. They have new technology like MRI, Cat Scans, and the ability to reconstruct images in two and three dimensions. These advancements are allowing dentists to be able to find infection easier and they are able to be much more specific and accurate.  We are now able to make procedures safer and more successful as well as help a greater range of patients.

3.     Cosmetic or Aesthetic Dentistry

Cosmetic and Aesthetic Dentistry is kind of like plastic surgery only it is used on the teeth. This is becoming very popular for dentists. Older people don’t want to go through the long process of making their teeth look good by going through orthodontics. With cosmetic dentistry, they are able to make the appearance of their teeth look good faster. Whitening/ teeth bleaching is the most common procedure used. Other common procedures are tooth reshaping, bonding, dental bridges, gum lifts, and bite reclamations. Cosmetic and Aesthetic Dentistry have become very popular and are now in high demand.

4.     Implants rather than Dentures

Another major trend seen by dentists are people wanting to get Implants rather than Dentures. People have found that implants increase stability. They also help people to chew better and speak properly. With dentures, it takes patience and sacrifice. You can’t do everything that you could before. With implants though, you can do almost everything like you could before. We are also finding that people who get the implants are able to eat a more normal diet and are therefore able to live a healthier lifestyle. Huge increases of people are deciding that the increased cost of an implant is worth it.

5.     Systemic Conditions Plaque (Periodontal)

The final trend that Wayne talked to me about was an increase in a disease called Periodontal. This is where there is an inflammation and infection that destroys the tissues that support teeth, including the gums, ligaments, and tooth sockets. It is caused by plaque that becomes trapped on the tooth and turns hard. Pregnancy, poor dental hygiene, and diabetes are three things that he said might cause this oral disease to occur. He said that this is one of the biggest things that he has seen that has increased among his patients most recently