Periodontal Pocket Depths

April 23, 2020 in Dentistry,Periodontal Treatment by McCarl Dental Group

As part of our ongoing efforts to help patients achieve and maintain their healthiest smiles, we recommend regular preventive dental checkups and teeth cleanings. During these visits, you have probably heard your dentist calling out numbers as they check your smile. They are measuring the depths of your gum tissue pockets. This is called periodontal charting, and it helps us keep track of your gum health. This important measure of periodontal (gum) health tracks the depth of the pockets around each tooth. The top of gum tissue does not attach directly to teeth. There is a space or pocket between the gum and the tooth before it attaches. This pocket deepens in the presence of bacteria, plaque, and tartar build up that lead to gum disease. To monitor and evaluate gum health, the pocket depth must be measured, recorded, and monitored over time. In this blog, we’ll walk through what periodontal pockets are, how they are connected to gum health, and why it’s so important to regularly monitor periodontal pocket depths.

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(Updated) Why Does My Tooth Hurt After Drinking Hot or Cold Beverages?

October 16, 2019 in Dental Emergencies,General dentistry by mccarl_dental

Hot or cold beverages can make your teeth sensitive.This is a question we are asked all the time, and our dentists know how painful and difficult it can be to struggle with temperature sensitivity. In the summer, there is nothing better than an ice cold beverage during an Orioles or Nationals game or after a sail on the Chesapeake Bay. In the winter, a hot drink can be soothing and warming for the whole body. Dental sensitivity that prevents you from enjoying your favorite beverages is frustrating, but you’re not alone. As many as 45 million people in the US struggle with dental sensitivity related to temperature, and the majority of these cases can be resolved with at-home care. However, some cases do need to be addressed by your dentist. If you’re one of the millions of people in the US struggling with tooth sensitivity and you’re ready to enjoy your favorite hot and cold beverages again, you should determine the underlying cause and work with your dentist to relieve tooth sensitivity with changes to your at-home oral hygiene routine or repair dental damage with in-office dentistry treatments.

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(Updated) Cracked or Broken Teeth Symptoms, Causes & Solutions

in Dental Emergencies,Dentistry by mccarl_dental

Severley Broken Teeth Requiring RC & Crown from McCarl Dental group the emergency dentist greenbelt trustsCracked or broken teeth are more than uncomfortable, they can also be unsightly and detrimental to oral health. Yet, many patients choose to live with cracked or broken teeth rather than seeking immediate treatment. If you have a cracked or broken tooth, don’t postpone your dental care. Without seeking emergency dental services as soon as possible, your tooth and surrounding teeth may be severely damaged or lost.

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The Top 4 McCarl Dental Group Videos of 2018

February 12, 2019 in General dentistry by mccarl_dental

At McCarl Dental Group, we do our utmost to offer our patients all of the information they need to achieve and maintain their healthiest and most beautiful smiles. Over the last year, we’ve had a lot of fun sharing tips for improved oral health and information about some of our most advanced dentistry procedures on our YouTube channel. We want to thank you all so much for watching and always supporting the McCarl Dental Group team in Millersville and Greenbelt. In this post, we’ve put together some information about each of our most watched videos of 2018, and we look forward to continuing to share more with you in 2019. Thanks for watching!

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Top 3 Benefits of Following the Six Month Rule

August 4, 2018 in General dentistry by mccarl_dental

Our dentists and team members in Millersville, Maryland always encourage patients to following the six month rule. It’s simple, visit our team every six months for dental exams and teeth cleanings. Then, take care of your smile at home with daily tooth brushing, flossing, and mouth rinse. This is the key to maintaining optimal oral health for every patient. Keep reading to find out more about the invaluable benefits of six month dental checkups and teeth cleaning with our Millersville dentist and team.

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Tips for New Denture Wearers

July 13, 2018 in Restorative Dentistry by mccarl_dental

If you’ve just gotten your first set of partial or full dentures, you’re likely experiencing a strange mix of emotions. You’re happy to be able to share a smile again. You’re worried about shifting teeth while eating meals in public with friends and family members, and you’re concerned you aren’t speaking clearly any longer. Most patients get used to their dentures fairly quickly, but if you’re struggling to adjust, we’re here to help. In this post, we’ll discuss some tips to help you achieve ideal denture function, so you can speak, chew, or smile with complete confidence and comfort.
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Protecting Your Smile with Dental Sealants

April 7, 2018 in Dentistry,General dentistry by mccarl_dental

When it comes to protecting smiles from tooth decay, we encourage all of our dental patients to do their best to brush thoroughly, floss carefully, and of course, keep up with regular preventive dental checkups. When it comes to our kids’ smiles, it can be more of a struggle to keep them healthy. Dental professionals and parents work hard to teach children to remove plaque buildup and clean their smiles thoroughly every day, but even the most diligent parents may not always have time to double check their children’s teeth every time they brush. What can you do to improve your child’s oral health (or your own) quickly and comfortably? Ask your dental hygienist or dentist about dental sealants.
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Help Your Greenbelt Dentists Recycle Toothbrushes

January 9, 2018 in Dentistry by mccarl_dental

Help Us Keep Greenbelt Green! Recycle toothbrushes and oral care packages!

Please recycle toothbrushes along with their packaging and empty toothpaste tubes. You may take used toothbrushes, plastic packaging, toothpaste tubes and their caps and empty dental floss containers to the City of Greenbelt, Public Works Department. Did you know that you should replace your toothbrush every 3 months? According to the American Dental Association, after 3-4 months, toothbrushes become worn out and frayed and may lose their effectiveness. Their dental research shows that new toothbrushes remove more plaque than old ones.

Recycle toothbrushes at Greenbelt Dental Office

Recycle toothbrushes. empty toothpaste tubes and floss containers.

How to Recycle Toothbrushes and Other Oral Care Products

At McCarl Dental Group we have participated in the Greenbelt recycling program since it started and are excited to embrace this new recycling program for oral care products. We encourage our dental patients to recycle empty toothpaste tubes and caps, toothbrushes, toothpaste cartons and toothbrush outer packaging and dental floss containers. There are new inside bins at the City of Greenbelt, Public Works Department, who participates with TerraCycle, a recycling company that specializes in recycling hard-to-recycle waste.

We encourage all of our dental patients and Greenbelt residents to recycle all of the oral hygiene supplies listed above. Please note: Electric toothbrushes, battery toothbrushes, and/or their parts are not recyclable through this program.

Our City of Greenbelt is a certified Sustainable Maryland Community and does a great job helping residents minimize their environmental impact through recycling. The community has been in partnership with the Green Team since 2014 and has been surveyed by Green ACES (Advisory Committee on the Environment and Sustainability) for decades.

Please help us actively promote and model environmental sustainability and contribute to a green lifestyle.

With best wishes for a greener Greenbelt and a Happy New Year,
The Dentists and Staff at McCarl Dental Group

4 Tips for Keeping Your Smile Healthy

November 14, 2017 in General dentistry by mccarl_dental

If you’re trying to improve your oral health or at-home hygiene routine, the best place to start is with a trip to your trusted general dentist. To get a head start, you can watch this informative video and read this blog for basic tips to improve your oral hygiene. In our educational video, Dr. Jay McCarl talks to a patient about effective strategies to maintain healthy teeth and gums for life. If you haven’t already, now is the time to talk to your dentist or dental hygienist about your at-home hygiene routine, and ask them for help maximizing the efficacy of your daily preventive dentistry routine.
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The Science of Cavities

October 9, 2017 in Dental Hygiene by mccarl_dental

Extracted tooth with extensive decayAncient humans used crude tools to clean their teeth, ate a coarse diet, and ended up fully or partially without teeth within a few decades of life. Through the ages, people have gotten better at caring for their smiles, and today, the rate of tooth loss has significantly decreased. However, the consumption of diets higher in sugary and acidic foods have caused a noted increase in cavities. In order to properly care for your teeth and keep your smile cavity free, you’ll need to know more about how cavities form.
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