Fluoride is a mineral that helps keep our teeth protected from cavities and strengthens our enamel.

Although toothpaste, water, and even some food contain small amounts of fluoride, fluoride treatments performed by a dentist offer a much higher concentration that helps remineralize your teeth and keeps them clean.

A fluoride treatment done at the dentist’s office is simple and pain-free.

Regular dental visits and teaching young children to care for their teeth will help them develop strong, healthy, permanent teeth.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has reported that childhood dental caries—which is an infectious form of tooth decay that can occur as early as toddlerhood—is more common in children than asthma.

Dr. Cochran has been studying and practicing pediatric dentistry since 1995. He is skilled in treating children’s dental issues and exams.

When a patient experiences a dental emergency like a broken or a knocked out tooth, or severe tooth pain, Dr. Cochran provides extra service to these patients.

Some dental visits simply cannot wait for regular office hours.

For those who are experiencing an emergency situation, whether it was caused by a fall, a sports injury, or any type of accident, always call Dr. Cochran’s office first. He and his team will work with you to get you into the office as soon as they can for treatment.

Most patients might not know that dentists are looking for signs of oral cancer during a routine dental exam.

Dentists like Dr. Cochran do this because discovering mouth cancer at an early stage increases the likelihood of successfully removing cancer. This especially benefits patients who are particularly at a higher risk of developing oral cancer for the following reasons:

• Prior diagnosis of oral cancer
• Regular tobacco use
• Frequent alcohol use

Essentially, during an oral cancer screening, Dr. Cochran is searching for mouth sores or red or white patches in the mouth. Also, shining a light inside of your mouth will make the healthy tissue look darker and the abnormal tissue looks lighter.

Did you know that dentists are able to treat sleeping disorders?

For patients who experience sleep apnea or snoring, Dr. Cochran is qualified to help by using a tool called oral appliance therapy.

Oral appliance therapy uses a custom-fit mouth guard that the patient wears while they sleep. This appliance keeps the airway from becoming obstructed by maintaining the jaw in a forward position. This relieves any sleep-disordered breathing the patient might experience.

Periodontal therapy is used in situations when plaque and tartar get below the gum line.

The best way to prevent this is through proper dental hygiene and regular dental visits. However, if plaque and tartar do get beneath the gum line, Dr. Cochran can perform a procedure to remove the harmful bacteria.

It is important to have tartar removed as soon as possible. If left untreated, it may lead to gum disease. Some signs to watch for include:

• Bleeding gums
• Receding gums
• Bright red gums
• Inflamed gums

Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) refers to the joint that connects the jaw to both sides of the skull.

These joints allow us to move our jaw and open our mouth, allowing us to speak, chew, and swallow. A healthy TMJ is made up of cartilage, muscle, ligaments, and bone.

When the TMJ sustains severe damage, it can trigger what is called temporomandibular disorder (TMD). Patients who suffer from TMD experience a variety of issues like a painful jaw and face, popping and clicking noises in the jaw, headaches, lockjaw, and decreased mobility of the jaw bone.

Dr. Cochran is qualified to diagnose and treat patients who suffer from TMJ/TMD disorders.

As the name suggests, root canal therapy (also known as endodontic therapy) is required when a dentist discovers infection and inflammation in the roots of a patient’s tooth.

This can occur when there is decay or trauma deep within the tooth.

The inside of our teeth contains pulp that at some point may become infected. Infections can occur from:

• Cavities
• Damage or Injury
• Multiple procedures performed on that tooth

Like most invasive dental procedures, the infected tooth is numbed before Dr. Cochran works on removing the infected pulp of the tooth. Then, the root canal is given a thorough cleaning to remove any leftover tissue and to kill the infection. Once this is done, it is time to restore the tooth. He’ll then use a rubbery material to fill the canals and a temporary crown will be placed on the tooth. Typically, teeth that have undergone root canal therapy are going to be more fragile than the rest of the teeth. Dr. Cochran will determine if the tooth will benefit from a bonded filling or core buildup and crown depending on the placement and location of the tooth.

Sometimes, the healthiest thing to do for our patients is to extract any infected or problematic teeth—including teeth that have been severely damaged, have sustained trauma, or that have developed abnormally.

For teeth that are easily accessible, Dr. Cochran can perform a simple dental extraction. What this means is that Dr. Cochran and his team will administer a local anesthetic to the patient before removing a tooth.

For the more difficult teeth, the patient will need to receive a surgical dental extraction. This type of extraction is primarily used for teeth that have not erupted through the gums, or for teeth that are not as easily reached as ones that could be pulled during a simple extraction. The dentist is often required to break the infected or damaged tooth into several pieces in order to properly remove it. Of course, the patient is treated with a local anesthetic before this process begins.

Unlike standard dentures, the benefits of implant-retained dentures involve much more stability.

This means that patients who choose to receive implant-retained dentures have less fear about their dentures becoming loose or falling out, and they can also enjoy a larger variety of foods because of this stability. So what’s the difference between normal dentures and implant-retained dentures?

As the name implies, implant-retained dentures are dentures that are attached to the jaw using dental implants. These implants have been surgically placed inside the jawbone. There are two types of implants:

Bar-Retained Dentures—Using up to five implants that have been installed in the jawbone, a bar-retained denture is made of a small metal bar that matches the natural curve of the patient’s jaw. The denture is fitted over the bar and clipped into place.

Ball-Retained Dentures—Also known as stud-attachment dentures, ball-retained dentures utilize ball joints at the end of each implant. These ball joints then fit into sockets that are created along the actual dentures.