General & Preventive Dentistry in Phoenix

When your body is unhealthy, it is often manifested in your mouth. When you are stressed, sick, or taking certain medications, it can have a damaging effect on your smile, and who can recognize that damage better than your smile specialist?

When infection and inflammation are present in the teeth or gums, it can lead to serious diseases such as:

• Inflammation.
• Immune system conditions.
• Atherosclerosis.
• Heart attacks.
• Pregnancy complications.
• Diabetes.
• Cancer.
• Joint replacement failure.
• Osteoporosis.

And doctors are even starting to see links between gum disease and Alzheimer’s. Clearly, when your general dentist says, “Prevention is the best medicine,” he means it!

At Diazo Family Dental & Braces you begin your first visit with the most comprehensive exam you can imagine and continue that comprehensive approach throughout your history with us. We’ll admit that the first exam is probably the most time-consuming, but that’s a good thing! That first exam is the baseline we compare all other exams to, so we want to make sure we don’t miss anything. We start by talking about your medical and oral history. Then we:

• We check your soft tissue for any signs of inflammation.
• We measure the gum pockets and examine for early signs of periodontal disease.
• Oral cancer screening.
• We examine your teeth for even the smallest cavities.
• We look for signs of wear or tear.
• We examine and evaluate the structure of your head, neck, and jaw.
• We inspect the first oral signs of general health problems.
• We look for signs of sleep apnea or TMJ disorder.

Oral cancer screenings are part of our comprehensive exam. But they are so important that we also do them at every hygiene visit. Why? Oral cancer can begin very silently, with very few distinct symptoms. Those subtle beginnings may be the reason why so many cases of oral cancer turn fatal. The Oral Cancer Foundation estimated that about 9,750 people died from oral cancer in 2019 out of about 53,000 Americans who were diagnosed. Some of the early symptoms of oral cancer can be mistaken for a simple lesion or sore, and considering how easy it is to bite your cheek or cut your tongue or gums, it’s understandable that these symptoms can be overlooked.

If you have any of the following symptoms in your mouth, call us immediately:

• Painful sores.
• A patch that lasts more than a few weeks.
• Frequent bleeding.
• Loose teeth or dentures that don’t fit properly.
• Difficulty opening the mouth.
• Numbness.
• Pain or difficulty swallowing.

Dental x-rays are truly amazing. They allow us to see what we cannot see with the eye, even in the most thorough examination. With x-rays, we can look beneath your enamel and tooth tissue and discover problems hiding beneath the surface. Unfortunately, not all dental x-rays are created equal. Older traditional dental x-rays use film that must be developed and then physically stored. Additionally, they expose our Phoenix patients to much more radiation than we would like. That is why we have invested in digital X-ray technology. The benefits of fully digital x-rays include:

• More comfortable for patients of all ages
• Much lower radiation exposure: approximately 80% less
• Clearer and brighter images
• Digital storage
• Easy comparison from visit to visit
• No paper or chemicals required for development
• Ecological

Additionally, because digital It’s just another way we invest in you – it’s worth it!

Mmmmm… that pleasant feeling you get when you leave your general dental office with your teeth and mouth clean! There really is nothing like it! We love it too. Our doctor and hygienists do a fantastic job of not only cleaning your teeth and gums of all the debris and grime that builds up on, around, and under them, but also doing it gently and comfortably. We use the Cavitron ultrasonic cleaner to remove all traces of plaque and tartar. What makes ultrasonic cleaning so gentle and effective is that it uses sound waves to remove even the toughest tartar both above and below the gum line, without scraping.

So why is hygiene so important, besides the fact that it makes your teeth feel good? Bacteria! Plaque is a sticky substance that bacteria live on. While they are there, carrying out their bacterial activity, they excrete acids. These acids attack the teeth and cause cavities. Worse yet, if plaque is not completely removed, it hardens and turns into tartar, or tartar, a hard scab that only your Phoenix general dentist can remove. This scab accumulates both on the teeth and under the gums and can cause gum recession and infection.

Clearly, dental cleanings and hygiene visits to Diazo Family Dental & Braces is a win-win situation. Your smile looks and feels fantastic and the health of your smile is protected from damage. What could be better?

It happens. We get too tired to brush and floss before bed. We eat too many sugary snacks. We skip our regular professional cleanings and suddenly things don’t look so good in your mouth. Your gums may bleed a little when you brush. There is a little extra sensitivity to heat, cold or sweets. And those happy pink gums look too red and swollen for comfort. It’s time to admit it: you have a gum infection.

Gum infections or periodontal disease are nothing to ignore. Gum infections not only cause recession, bleeding and tooth loss, but they can also have a serious effect on your overall well-being. Gum disease has been linked to all types of illnesses, including stroke, heart disease, and cancer.

If we find signs of gum disease, we will treat it with an intensified cleaning program to remove all tartar and infection. Before you know it, your gums will be back to pink and your smile will feel ready to take on the world.

Everyone has heard of fluoride and realizes that they need it in their toothpaste. But why? What makes fluoride so important? Every day, every minute, your teeth are exposed to threats. From the things you eat to clenching and grinding from stress, your enamel is under attack. Fluoride is a natural element that strengthens and protects teeth by “remineralizing” the enamel. Plus, when used correctly, it can also increase the remineralizing qualities of your own saliva! According to the American Dental Association, “When you eat things like candy, crackers, or noodles, cavity-causing bacteria begin to feed on the carbohydrates in these foods. This produces acids that attack your enamel. It causes calcium and phosphate to be removed from tooth enamel, leaving you more vulnerable to cavities… However, saliva interrupts the attack as it coats the teeth and adds calcium and phosphate to replace what had been removed. Once in the enamel, fluoride binds to calcium and phosphate to create the most powerful defense system that teeth can have to prevent the formation of cavities: fluorapatite.”

Dr. Lucas Brimley suggests supplementing your children’s teeth with this important dental protector at every visit. But fluoride isn’t just for kids. If your teeth need a little extra protection, talk to us about professional fluoride care for adults!

Protecting your teeth and preventing dental problems is one of the biggest benefits of general dentistry in Phoenix. That’s why we focus so much on exams, cleanings, and fluoride. That’s also why we protect your smile every day with custom-made dental guards.

Dental emergencies can be very traumatic, not only for your smile, but also for your nerves and your budget. Diazo Family Dental & Braces General Dentistry in Phoenix is dedicated to making all of your dental care, even in emergency situations, comfortable, comforting, and affordable. If you have an emergency, call us right away. We are here to help at any time.
If your emergency occurs during business hours, we will try to reach you the same day you call. If your emergency is after hours or on the weekend, don’t worry, we have instructions on how to contact us on our answering system. We will call you back and explain the situation and what you need to do. If there is facial trauma in addition to dental trauma, call us and then go to the emergency room.

We are here to hold your hand and get your smile back as soon as possible.