Services

Aspiring to exceed your expectations and create the smile of your dreams Kinross Dental & Invisible Orthodontics is the dental practice for you. We provide patients with quality dentistry and are dedicated to caring for your oral needs.

Kinross Dental provides patients with the following range of contemporary oral treatments and services;

 

Examinations

A full dental examination is an essential part of your dental health. During an examination, we establish the health of your mouth with an overall view of your general health. Without a proper examination, we can’t tell exactly how many problems you have or what is the nature of the problems.

Dental radiographs (X-rays) are an essential part of the examination. Just as a medical doctor needs a radiograph to see if you’re leg is broken or fractured, we need radiographs to see whether you have cavities starting in between your teeth, underneath existing fillings, bone levels around your teeth and a whole host of other information which is important in planning your treatment.

Did you know that the vast majority of cavities in people’s teeth don’t even cause them pain? Did you know that many people have painless dental abscesses in their gums and jaws that are undiagnosed? Generally speaking, cavities and gum disease are a lot easier (and cheaper!) to manage before the onset of pain so get into your dentist and get yourself checked out as soon as possible. Delaying the visit only prolongs and complicates things! {back to top}

Oral Hygiene

Your oral hygiene is essential for a healthy mouth. There are many aspects to oral hygiene in addition to brushing and flossing. There are a variety of brushes, a variety of floss types and a whole bunch of other adjunctive aids to help you get your oral hygiene to the best it can be.

As part of your dental care, we discuss your oral hygiene in detail and can answer any questions you may have. For example, we are often asked what the cause of bad breath (halitosis) is. Did you know that bad breath is commonly caused by bacterial colonisation of the tongue? Do you know the methods of keeping the tongue clean?

Please feel free to discuss your oral hygiene needs with us when you attend for your first examination or you’re attending your recall examinations and hygiene appointments with our hygienist! {back to top}

 

Minimal amalgam dentistry

In modern dentistry, white filling material (composite) when placed properly can last a long time in people’s mouth. Back in the day, the fillings dentists did would be generally a lot larger so amalgam (metal) fillings were used for strength. Now, fillings that we do are generally smaller so white filling material (composite) is an excellent alternative to metal fillings. Even in slightly larger fillings, composite does quite well. As the filling size increases though, other alternatives need to be considered.

We prefer to use white fillings whenever possible because of their “bonding” to teeth which means we don’t have to remove so much tooth and use things like pins to keep the filling in place. In some very rare instances, we can’t use any other material other than a metal filling to fix a tooth. We believe in these very rare instances, we’d rather keep the tooth rather than have to have the tooth removed!

Replacing amalgam (metal) fillings

The current standing of the Australian Dental Association (ADA) is that metal fillings shouldn’t be removed just because they’re “metal” or they have “mercury” in them. All fillings that we do in dentistry have a limited lifespan so your existing metal fillings will eventually show signs of breakdown. As long as you attend the dentist for recall appointments, we can advise you when these fillings start breaking down and when they do need replacement, we will advise you on alternative materials to replace your older metal fillings.
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Preventive Dentistry

We’re entering an era where we dentists, realise that preventing problems rather than a “wait till something’s broke before we fix it” approach is more beneficial to our patients.

Preventive dentistry empowers us as health professionals and you as the patient, to proactively prevent decay and gum disease from affecting your mouth. For example, regular fluoride treatments can help to arrest and remineralise areas of initial decay.

We know from studies, that both decay and gum disease are preventable…so why not prevent them!? At Kinross Dental, not only do we offer modern options for fixing the end results of dental problems but we strive to prevent them in the first place. Preventive dentistry is the foundation upon which general dentistry is built upon.

Ask us about preventive dentistry and we’ll be more than happy to discuss the topic with you. {back to top}

 

Wisdom Teeth

Often there is little space at the rear of the jaws for wisdom teeth to come through and this often leads the wisdom teeth to become wedged in or "impacted".

Some impacted wisdom teeth remain buried and cause no trouble. However, other impacted wisdom teeth my cause severe problems and need to be removed. Possible problems caused by impacted wisdom teeth include infection, pain, crowding, cysts, damage to nearby molars, ulcers or sites of food trapping.

Removal of wisdom teeth is a very common procedure. Removal of troublesome wisdom teeth should generally be done as soon as possible. Many people often think that you have to go into hospital or be seen by an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon to have wisdom teeth removed but here at Kinross Dental, this has become one of our focuses.

Of course there are still the few cases that are preferable to be referred to an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, but generally, wisdom teeth surgery can be carried out efficiently, affordably and comfortably using conscious sedation (sleep dentistry) in our surgery. {back to top}

 

Root Canal Therapy

Root canal therapy is a method whereby we can retain a tooth in the mouth, which otherwise would be removed. There are a variety of reasons why root canal therapy may be needed but its usually as a result of decay. Bacteria can enter the pulp (containing the blood vessels and nerves that nourish the tooth) of the tooth and cause a tooth ache. In some circumstances, the bacteria invade the pulp, make their way down the canals inside the tooth and spread into the bone in which the teeth are anchored in.

To eliminate the infection, we can initiate root canal therapy on a tooth, disinfecting it thoroughly and then keeping it in the long term. Often, a crown (cap) is placed on the tooth as the process of root canal therapy can significantly weaken the tooth. The crown also acts to fit the tooth really well so it makes it less likely for bacteria to re-enter the tooth and infect the root canals again.

Usually there are three appointments involved in root canal therapy:

1) The “Get you out of pain” appointment. If you present in pain, we access the “dead or dying” pulp and place an agent to eliminate pain and the bulk of the bacteria causing pain.
2) The “Canal cleaning” appointment. This appointment is used to thoroughly disinfect the canals mechanically and also with the use of chemical agents.
3) The “Canal filling” appointment. This appointment can be a number of weeks to months after the canal cleaning appointment depending on the nature of the presenting condition of the tooth. As a general rule of thumb, the longer the tooth has been infected, the longer we have to wait before filling the canals of the tooth.

A crown is placed over 2 appointments to seal the tooth up. Occasionally, a crown may not be needed but that depends on a lot of factors that the dentist has to weigh up.

Root canal therapy has been around for many years and is a great way to retain a tooth that otherwise could be lost for many years to come. Some people have horror stories about root canal therapy but in reality, root canal therapy is usually completely painless as long as anaesthesia is achieved. We have had a number of developments in the methods for reducing and eliminating pain in dentistry, so you should feel confident that we will provide you with the best quality of care with the least amount of discomfort possible. {back to top}