We hear that question a lot - it's a good one. Our philosphy of patient-centered care is likely different from many dentists that you may have seen in the past. We feel that you and your family deserve more than someone who is merely 'looking for holes' to drill and fill. Instead, we look at the big picture in order to develop a long-term plan of health that is customized just for you. It wouldn't be smart to build a house without a blueprint. In the same way, it is not smart to perform expensive dental treatments without first making a good set of plans.

Just like an architect will evaluate a building site thoroughly before starting to make a design, our first appointment is used to gather all the information needed to put together a “blueprint” for your dental health.

Health History and Interview
Our first goal is to make sure that your treatment can be done safely. There are many medical conditions that can potentially interfere with your dental treatment or affect how well you heal and so it is important that we know about your general health. Our health history can be filled out online or you can download a printed copy here. If, for some reason, you need to fill out forms in the office, please arrive about ten to fifteen minutes early. You can always ask us for help if there is anything you do not know. Also, if you take medications or have any special medical instructions, you can help us by copying them or simply writing them down along with the doctors who have prescribed them. We can consult with your doctors, if needed, so you don't have to worry about a thing.

Once we have reviewed your health information, you will have the opportunity to tell us what your health goals are. It seems to be a novel concept in medicine these days. It shouldn't be - after all, it's your body.

Oral Cancer Screening
Oral cancer makes up about 4% of cancers in our body, but because it is usually detected late, it has a much higher death rate than it should. Our screening involves checking your head, neck and face for lumps and bumps that shouldn't be there. In addition to our physical exam, we offer two incredible new technologies – Vizilite and OralCdx. Both of these can screen and highlight suspicious areas without a traditional biopsy. Like all Cancer, early detection is the key to survival.

Tooth Examination
We will chart any restorations, missing teeth and any areas of concern. We will complete some basic analysis of your bite and note teeth that are out of alignment. If you wear dentures or partials, we will check their fit. If you are interested in changing your smile, we will complete an examination of your tooth size, color and shape and discuss some of the ways improvements can be made. In some cases, we may find it necessary to take dental study models or photographs.

About radiographs or x-rays…
Many patients ask us if they really need dental x-rays. Our philosophy is simple: radiographs give us information that can't be seen with the naked eye. Without them, we can't do a good job of finding problems. How much would it be worth to find a cyst or tumor inside your jawbone before it does significant damage? On the other hand, this must be balanced with the small dose of radiation needed.

Simply put, we try very hard to use the smallest dose and balance it to get the information you need to make good choices – to get the most from the least. We have made a significant investment in digital technology to accomplish this. Using both direct digital intraoral sensors and a digital panoramic machine, we can reduce your exposure up to 90% over regular speed film!

If you have any recent x-rays of sufficient quality, bring them with you to your appointment and we will be glad to eliminate duplicates. You can bring them to our office for computer scanning or you can provide them by email or cd-rom. We are always happy to answer questions so if you still have any concerns, please ask.

Click here for a records transfer request that you can send to your previous dentist.

Gum Examination
After this, we perform a thorough gum exam. Did you know that 75% of the population has mild to advanced gum disease? Did you also know that it is usually completely painless? Like untreated diabetes or hypertension, gum disease silently attacks and dissolves the bone supporting our teeth over a long time period with few, if any, symptoms. The only way to adequately diagnose gum disease is to measure the pockets around your teeth and compare those measurements to a good set of x-rays. If you have gums, this exam is important!

Putting It All Together
The next step is the most important step of all. We combine all of the information that we have found together and design your very own personalized “blueprint” for dental health. It may be simple enough to put together on the spot and require only one or two steps or it may be involved enough that we need to outline your choices and present them to you at a separate time.

• We will use what we find and what you tell us to make a sound plan and give you choices, where possible.
• We will explain those choices to you in a way that is easy to understand.
• You will know how long procedures may take and what pitfalls we may find along the way.
• You will know how much your treatment will cost before you start and you will have payment options from which to choose.
• Using this plan, we know that you will ultimately save time, effort and money.