Education and prevention are the keys to maintaining good oral health. We take the time to educate patients on proper oral hygiene and preventive care to avoid dental problems before they start.
Teeth naturally darken over time, and coffee, tea, wine, and tobacco speed that along. Professional whitening gives a brighter result than over-the-counter products can typically achieve, and with supervision that keeps the process comfortable.
We offer two options. Zoom in-office whitening is completed in a single visit and produces a noticeable change in about an hour, which makes it a good choice before an event or when you want results right away. Take-home trays are custom-fitted to your teeth and used with professional-strength gel on your own schedule, brightening gradually over a couple of sessions. Many patients use the trays afterward for occasional touch-ups.
Whitening works on natural enamel, not on crowns, veneers, or fillings, so if you have restorations on visible teeth, we’ll plan the timing and shade with that in mind. Some temporary sensitivity is common and usually fades within a day or two.
Before starting, we’ll check that your teeth and gums are healthy and talk through which approach fits your goals, so the result looks bright but still natural for your smile.
A veneer is a thin custom shell bonded to the front surface of a tooth. Unlike a crown, which covers the whole tooth, a veneer addresses appearance while leaving most of the natural tooth structure intact.
Veneers are typically chosen for teeth that are healthy but discolored in a way that whitening won't correct, chipped, worn at the edges, slightly crowded, or unevenly spaced. They can be done on a single tooth to match its neighbors, or across several front teeth for a more uniform result.
Because they're layered porcelain, veneers reflect light in a way that resembles natural enamel — closer than most other restorative materials. Shade, shape, and proportion are chosen deliberately, with the aim of a result that suits your face rather than announcing itself.
Dr. Gomes-Moore's background in art and biotechnology informs this work, and the process is collaborative: we discuss what you want changed before anything is prepared, so the outcome reflects your goals.
A crown is a custom cap that covers a damaged tooth completely, restoring its shape, size, and strength. We often recommend one when a tooth has a large filling, a crack, or significant wear, or following root canal therapy, when what remains of the tooth needs protection.
The main benefit is preservation. A weakened tooth is vulnerable to fracturing, and once that happens the options narrow — sometimes to extraction. A crown reinforces and seals the tooth so you can chew comfortably and keep your natural root in place, which also helps maintain the surrounding bone and the alignment of neighboring teeth.
There is an appearance benefit as well. Porcelain crowns are shaded to match the teeth on either side, so a restored tooth blends in rather than standing out. On a front tooth, that can change how comfortable you feel smiling.
We use our intra-oral scanner to take a digital impression, which is faster and more comfortable than traditional putty.
A root canal treats infection or inflammation inside a tooth. The pulp — the soft tissue containing nerves and blood vessels at the center of the tooth — can become damaged through deep decay, a crack, or injury. When that happens, the tooth often becomes painful or sensitive, though sometimes there are no symptoms at all until the problem is advanced.
Treatment involves removing the affected pulp, cleaning and shaping the canals inside the root, and sealing them. The goal is to eliminate the source of infection while keeping your natural tooth. That matters more than it might sound: a natural root maintains the bone around it and keeps neighboring teeth from shifting, which no replacement fully replicates.
The procedure has a reputation it no longer deserves. With modern anesthetic and technique, most patients describe it as comparable to having a filling placed. The discomfort people associate with root canals is usually the infection itself — which the treatment resolves.
A crown typically follows, since a treated tooth needs protection to handle normal chewing forces. Once restored, the tooth looks and functions like the others around it.
A filling restores a tooth that has been damaged by decay. We remove the affected portion of the tooth, clean the area, and rebuild it with tooth-colored composite resin. The material is matched to the shade of your natural tooth, so the repair is difficult to spot, even on a back tooth.
Treating a cavity early is one of the simplest ways to protect a tooth long-term. Decay that’s caught while it’s small can be repaired conservatively, preserving as much healthy structure as possible. Left alone, it tends to progress deeper, toward the nerve, where the treatment becomes more involved and the tooth more vulnerable.
Bonding uses the same composite material for cosmetic and minor structural repairs: a chipped edge, a small gap, a worn area, or a tooth that’s slightly out of proportion with its neighbors. The resin is applied in layers, shaped by hand, and polished to blend in. It’s often completed in a single visit, usually with little or no removal of natural tooth structure.
For many patients, bonding is a practical way to address a small concern without committing to a more extensive restoration. If a broader change is the goal, we can talk through how bonding compares with options like veneers.
Dentures replace missing teeth with a removable, custom-made prosthetic. A full denture replaces all of the teeth in an arch. A partial denture fills in gaps where some natural teeth remain, attaching to them for support.
Missing teeth affect more than appearance. They can make chewing difficult, change the way you speak, and over time allow the face to lose some of its support, which can make a person look older than they are. A well-made denture restores function and fills out the natural contours of the face.
Fit and comfort are where a denture succeeds or fails. Each one is made to the specific shape of your mouth, and the teeth are selected for shade, size, and arrangement so they look natural for your face rather than generic. We expect a period of adjustment and follow up to refine the fit as you get used to wearing them.
Your mouth changes gradually over the years, so dentures benefit from periodic checks. Relines and adjustments help keep them comfortable and secure long after they’re first placed.
Our goal is always to save a natural tooth when we reasonably can. Sometimes, though, removing a tooth is the healthiest option, such as when it’s too badly broken or decayed to restore, severely affected by gum disease, or causing crowding or other problems in the mouth.
Before an extraction, we review your X-rays and health history and talk through what to expect. The area is thoroughly numbed, and while you’ll feel some pressure, the procedure itself shouldn’t be painful. We take care to remove the tooth as gently as possible to protect the surrounding bone and gum tissue.
Afterward, we’ll give you clear instructions for the first few days of healing, including how to manage any soreness, what to eat, and what to avoid so the site heals well. Most patients are back to normal routines within a day or two.
When a tooth is removed, it’s worth planning for what comes next. A gap can allow neighboring teeth to shift and the bone in that area to shrink over time. We’ll discuss replacement options such as an implant crown, a bridge, or a partial denture, so you can make a decision that fits your goals.
Periodontal disease is an infection of the gums and the bone that supports the teeth. It begins when plaque and tartar collect below the gumline, causing inflammation that gradually separates the gums from the teeth and forms pockets where bacteria can thrive. Early on, it may show up only as bleeding when you brush or floss. As it progresses, it can lead to receding gums, loose teeth, and eventually tooth loss, often without significant pain along the way.
When pockets have formed, a standard cleaning isn’t enough to reach the problem. Scaling and root planing, sometimes called a deep cleaning, removes tartar and bacteria from below the gumline and smooths the root surfaces so the gums can heal and reattach more closely to the teeth. The area is numbed for comfort, and treatment is often divided into sections over more than one visit.
Periodontal disease can be controlled, but it requires ongoing attention. After active treatment, we move to periodontal maintenance: cleanings scheduled more frequently than a routine visit, typically every three to four months. These visits keep bacteria from re-establishing in the deeper areas, and we measure the pockets over time to make sure the gums stay stable.
Gum health matters beyond the mouth as well. Research has linked periodontal disease with conditions such as diabetes and heart disease, which is one more reason to treat it early and keep it in check.
We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.