KEEP SMILES HEALTHY & STRONG
When it comes to ensuring our patients have picture-perfect, healthy smiles, we always make the same recommendation – start with prevention. The Barco Family Dentistry team focuses all patient treatment plans on preventive dental care to keep smiles healthy and avoid the costly, time consuming advanced dentistry procedures whenever possible. If it’s been more than six months since your last dental appointment, it’s time to call our team to schedule your preventive dentistry appointment. We welcome patients from Bloomington, Ellettsville, and other surrounding communities.
CHECKUPS & CLEANINGS
The key to keeping your smile healthy is visiting our team at least every six months for checkups and professional teeth cleanings. During these six month appointments, we’ll examine patients’ smiles, clean teeth thoroughly, offer a one on one consultation, and provide any general dentistry services necessary to protect teeth until your next visit. Each checkup includes three main components:
- Diagnostics – this includes digital x-rays, intraoral photography, and a visual examination. Our team is screening for common oral health issues including tooth decay, gum disease, TMJ dysfunctions, teeth grinding and clenching (bruxism), and oral cancer.
- Cleanings – a skilled hygienist will carefully remove plaque and tartar from even the hardest to access parts of the smile. Hygienists can also answer your oral hygiene questions, demonstrate appropriate tooth brushing or flossing techniques, and make oral hygiene product recommendations.
- Consultations – the dentist will sit down with you to review the results of our diagnostic evaluation of your smile and create a plan for treatment going forward. We’ll use digital x-rays and intraoral photos to make our assessments and recommendations for care clear to you.
DENTAL SEALANTS
An easy, painless way to protect your smile between six month checkups, dental sealants place a physical barrier between your smile and decay-causing plaque and tartar buildup. We simply apply a thin layer of liquid sealant to the surfaces of teeth where it will seep into the difficult to clean pits and grooves. Then, we use a curing light to harden the sealant material in place, creating a clear protective coat that makes your teeth easier to clean and reduces risk for cavities.
CHILDREN’S DENTISTRY
We welcome patients of all ages at Barco Family Dentistry. Our dentists and team have years of experience working with young patients, and we love having the opportunity to treat entire families for generations. Unless your child experiences significant developmental concerns most effectively treated by a pediatric dentistry specialist, our team is happy to offer them dental care for their entire life. Most importantly, we work hard to make your child’s dental experience a positive one that will encourage them to keep their smiles whole and healthy.
TMJ/TMD THERAPY
The temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are the tiny, triangular joints that connect the jaw to the skull bone, and most importantly, allow you to speak, chew, and yawn. Patients who have TMJ dysfunction (TMD) find themselves experiencing discomfort when opening and closing the mouth, unable to fully extend their jaw, hear grinding or clicking sounds when opening and closing the mouth, and suffer from chronic headaches, neck pain, and other radiating discomfort. We encourage you to contact us right away if you experience any of these warning signs. We offer a variety of therapies to renew oral health for our patients suffering from TMD.
NIGHTGUARDS FOR BRUXISM
If you grind and clench your teeth at night, you may be experiencing a chronic oral health condition known as bruxism. It has a number of causes, and while it may seem harmless, the resultant dental chips and wear can be detrimental to oral health. It may be difficult to imagine breaking a habit that only happens during sleep, but our team can give you a comfortable nighttime oral appliance that will place a protective barrier between your teeth protecting you from potential damage and wear.
MOUTHGUARDS / SPORTSGUARDS
If you or a loved one participate in a sport where your smile may come in contact with other players, sports equipment, or hard surfaces, you should be wearing a mouthguard during every practice or game. Most of our patients know about the bulky, uncomfortable sportsguards that are available from their local sporting goods stores, but for many, a custom mouthguard from our office will provide a more comfortable and effective solution.
FLUORIDE TREATMENT
Fluoride is one of the nutrients essential in the development of strong, healthy bones. This includes the hardest bone in the body, tooth enamel. Ingested fluoride helps you produce healthy teeth, but once teeth erupt from the gums, topical fluoride is needed to keep tooth enamel strong and free of decay. Fluoridated toothpastes and mouthwashes may be adequate to protect your smile, but for those patients who are more prone to decay, we may recommend professional grade topical fluoride treatments during your six month checkups.
SNORE THERAPY
Snoring is a common sleep disorder affecting millions of US adults. We offer a comfortable, portable, silent sleep apnea therapy that helps patients open their airways and stop snoring for good. Custom crafted oral appliances from Barco Family Dentistry shift jaws gently forward keeping the airway clear during sleep, leading to much better rest and more functional and productive days. Best of all, results are nearly instantaneous, and you will begin seeing benefits right away!