Dr. W. Shuit Dentistry

FAQs

At Dr. W. Shuit Dentistry, our professional team is readily available to assist you with any questions or concerns.

Listed below for your reference, are commonly asked questions:

1. Are you accepting new patients?
   Yes. Dr. W. Shuit Dentistry continues to grow and continues to accept new patients. If you are considering a new dentist for you and your family, we invite you to stop by to meet our team and take a tour of our office or to schedule an appointment.
2. Why is it important that I visit my dentist every 6 months?
   We recommend that patients visit our office at least twice yearly to ensure optimal oral and general health and to help avoid serious and costly future problems. In addition to cleaning and polishing all the visible and hidden surfaces of your teeth, we also check for many potential problems. Tooth decay, oral cancer and periodontal (gum) disease are just a few examples of problems that can have serious consequences if left undetected. In certain cases, we may even recommend 3 or 4 visits per year in order to prevent and minimize periodontal and systemic diseases.
   Maintaining a regular appointment schedule with your dentist isn’t just good for your teeth, it’s an important part of your overall health.
3. Do you treat children?
   Yes, our office loves to work with children at a young age and teaching them the importance of a healthy smile.
4. When should a child have its first visit to the dentist?
   The Canadian Dental Association recommends the first visit by age 1 or within 6 months of the eruption of the first tooth.  Along with taking our first look at your child’s oral condition, this first appointment is also largely focused on the parents and helping them to establish a good oral hygiene program and diet for the child.
   A child’s primary teeth are vital to the long-term health of their permanent adult teeth. The premature loss of primary teeth as a result of accidents or decay can cause serious problems, including poorly spaced and crooked adult teeth. As a result, it is just as important to care for a child’s baby teeth as it is for the adult teeth that follow.
5. What is Nitrous Oxide and How Can it Help Me? Or How Can Nitrous Oxide Help With Dental Treatment Fear?
   Do you ever get anxious about having dental work done? Has your fear prevented you from getting the dental care you need? No one knows these fears better than your dentist. That’s why some dentists offer inhalation sedation, or laughing gas, to their patients.Laughing gas, or nitrous oxide (N₂0), is an odourless, colourless gas that patients can inhale through a mask placed over the nose. The gas, often pleasantly scented with vanilla or mint, works rapidly. Patients report feeling relaxed, calm, and happy during use. As its nickname implies, laughing gas can sometimes make people feel giddy or giggly, but without losing control.

   With N₂O, Dentists are able to perform many procedures on previously anxious patients and patients feel no pain or discomfort. N₂O has the added advantage of being completely reversible, with no lingering grogginess. When a procedure is completed, patients are given oxygen to breathe for a few minutes and the effect of the sedation is completely reversed.

   There’s no need to put off dental work because of fear or anxiety. Ask your dentist whether inhalation sedation, or laughing gas is right for you.

6. What is periodontal disease?
   Periodontal disease is an infectious and inflammatory disease which destroys the periodontal tissue. These tissues consist of the gums and the bone that support the teeth. It is a gum and bone disease. Periodontal disease affects 3 out of 4 adults. It is caused by a growing colony of living bacteria called “plaque”. The greatest cause of adult tooth loss is periodontal disease.
   If detected in the early stages, periodontal disease can be treated and controlled.
7. Fillings – Silver or white – What’s the difference?
   Many of us who grew up before the time of fluoridated water have a mouth full of silver fillings. These fillings known as amalgams, have proven to be extremely durable restorations, but they are not very pleasing to the eye.
   Fortunately, recent advances in dental materials have made it possible to use tooth coloured filling materials. These materials can be virtually indistinguishable from natural teeth and are used to achieve long lasting and attractive restorations. In our practice, we use tooth coloured materials for almost all of the fillings that we place. We even use these materials to replace old amalgam fillings that have started to deteriorate or that simply detract from the appearance of our patient’s smiles.

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