What is bruxism?

Bruxism is a habit of grinding one’s teeth, especially during sleep. It is said that most people experience bruxism at least once in their lives. Mild bruxism is not harmful. Severe bruxism not only harms the teeth but also becomes a disorder. Ask your dentist for the right kind of treatment for bruxism.

What is edentulous?

If a person does not have any teeth in either the upper jaw or the lower jaw, he/she is said to be edentulous. This not only disrupts normal eating habits but also affects speech significantly.

What is dentition?

The term, dentition is used to refer to the arrangement of teeth in the mouth. Human beings have three kinds of dentition in their lives: primary dentition, consisting of deciduous or milk teeth; combination of primary and permanent teeth; and permanent teeth. The teeth arrangement in the mouth is assigned a numbering to identify different types of teeth.

What is mastication?

Mastication is the process of eating food involving the teeth, the tongue, and the jaws. Simply put, it is the process of chewing food. Mastication is the first step towards food digestion; improper mastication can lead to digestive problems.

What is parasthesia?

Parasthesia is usually a temporary damage to the sensory areas of the skin or teeth. Thus, a person affected by parasthesia may not feel anything in parts of his/her body when exposed to heat, cold, pricking etc.

Ask your dentist for more information on these.

Happy smiling!

What is oral irrigation?

Oral irrigation is part of the extended dental care routine. Oral irrigation implies cleaning the teeth by means of rinsing using an apparatus called the oral irrigator. The instrument is filled with water, which then is directed to you mouth. The water is released at a high speed to clean hard-to-reach places like the gaps between the teeth.

What is odontalgia?

This fancy term refers to the pain in the tooth or in the area around it.

What is barodontalgia?

Barodontalgia is a type of toothache. The term comes from the words ‘barometer’ and ‘odontalgia’. This type of dental pain arises because of a sudden change in the barometric pressure. This pain is common among scuba divers and high-flying pilots. Barodontalgia is also known as aerodontalgia.

What are deciduous teeth?

Deciduous teeth are nothing but the primary teeth or the ‘milk teeth’. These teeth are replaced by a permanent set of teeth. People often do not pay much attention to the care of these teeth; this may cause severe problems later in life. It is important to take care of the teeth of infants and children as much as it is critical to take care of adult teeth.

What is Gemini tooth?

A Gemini tooth is the one that starts to part and develop two crowns. Consult your dentist to rectify the problem.

What is halitosis?

Simply put, halitosis means bad breath. The foul smell does not necessarily originate from the mouth. If you are unable to get rid of bad breath even after following a proper dental care routine, seek you doctor’s advice.

Happy smiling!

What is anodontia?

Anodontia or anodontia vera is a condition in which no teeth grows. Anodontia is a genetic condition and occurs as a result of the condition, ectodermal dysplasias which is different parts of the body are affected by nerve problems. Hypodontia, the lack of a few teeth, can be corrected by using dental implants.

What is hyperdontia?

Hyperdontia is the condition in which the mouth has more teeth than usual. The condition also is a result of genetic conditions as well as environmental factors. Ask your dentist for your information on hyperdontia.

What is microdontia?

Microdontia is the dental condition in which the teeth are smaller than the usual size. In most cases, microdontia affects only one teeth or a very few. Also a genetic disorder, microdontia is said to be a symptom of another problem like dwarfism.

Microdontia in one or two teeth may give an impression of missing teeth. Typically, tooth replacement is the cure for this condition.

What is macrodontia?

Macrodontia is condition in which some or all teeth of a person are larger than usual. This is also a genetic disorder and is attributed to gigantism. In some cases, macrodontia affects one side of the face.

Ask your dentist for more information on these diseases and their treatments. With technological advancements in the field of dentistry, it is possible to correct all these dental abnormalities.

Happy smiling!

Whenever we refer to the mouth, we refer to the lips, the teeth, the inner cheeks, the gums, and the tongue. The mouth of ours is responsible for more things than we give it credit for.

• It helps us smile.
• Along with the jaws, it gives our face its structure.
• It enables us to speak.
• It helps us chew and shallow, thus eat.
• It equips us with expressions.
• And, it helps us kiss!

In today’s post, I will share information about one of the most integral part of the mouth – the teeth. What else can the dentists be obsessed with?

The 32 teeth that adults have are classified under four different categories:

• Incisors: These are also known as the cutting teeth. If you divide the mouth into four quadrants: right upper jaw, left upper jaw, right lower jaw, and left lower jaw, we have two incisors in each quadrants, totaling to eight. These teeth are very sharp and usually used to bite into food. These are the most visible teeth of all, building your smile.
• Canines: Each quadrant has one canine, making it a total of four. Canine teeth are conical in shape and very strong. If you have ever used your teeth to tear off something, you must have used one of these teeth. The canines are the immediate neighbors of incisors. These stand out from the rest of the teeth in the mouth because they appear a little taller than others.
• Pre-molars: There are eight pre-molars in our mouth, two in each quadrant. They are located immediately after the canines. These teeth help in chewing our food.
• Molars: There are three molars in each quadrant of our mouth. The molars complete the chewing process before the food is swallowed and passed down into the body. The molars are the last teeth to come into the mouth. The molars are the strongest of all teeth. These teeth are recognizable because of their width.

While all the four types of teeth have different functions, they are all prone to plaque and decay. Thus, apart from following a proper dental care routine at home, visit your dentist once every six months.

Happy smiling!