What is Restorative Dentistry?

The purpose of restorative dentistry is not only to repair and rebuild broken and missing teeth, it is especially focused on re-creating the ability to chew and speak properly. The design aspect of restorative dentistry includes cosmetic goals and preserving the health of the jaw bone, jaw joints and soft tissue.

Dr. Thomas provides restorative dentistry procedures including CEREC® One-Visit crowns, composite fillings, bridges, root canals, dental implant restorations, and removable partial dentures and complete dentures in his downtown Savannah dental office.

Restoring Your Smile begins with a Plan

Beginning with your first visit to our practice, Dr. Thomas will talk with you to learn more about your overall concerns and dental needs. He will review digital dental x-rays and photos of your teeth to diagnose any common dental problems, such as broken teeth, fractured silver fillings or periodontal (gum) disease.

Following your comprehensive dental examination, Dr. Thomas will develop a treatment plan to rebuild your smile to proper health and function.

Your treatment plan will provide details on the expected costs of treatment and any estimated dental insurance benefits. We want every patient to receive the dental care they deserve! Dr. Thomas will help you prioritize your treatment to work with your schedule and budget. We also have CareCredit® healthcare financing available and can assist you with an application. Learn more about our Dental Designs of Savannah financial options.

Your Savannah Restorative Dentist

Dr. Richard Thomas provides a wide range of restorative services to rebuild your dental health and regain your smile confidence. Common restorative procedures available at Dental Designs of Savannah include:

Dental Crowns

What is a dental crown?

When a tooth is cracked, decayed, or damaged, a dental crown may be recommended. A crown is a permanent covering that is designed to fit over the original tooth to restore proper biting and chewing function. The crown also helps prevent further damage to the natural tooth structure. Crowns may be made of porcelain ceramics, zirconia, gold and other metals, acrylic resin, or an amalgam (a mix) of these materials.

CEREC® One-Visit Crowns

Our practice provides same-day dental crowns using CEREC® CAD/CAM dental technology. CEREC® imaging tools and computerized manufacturing technology give Dr. Thomas the ability to design and mill your crown while you wait comfortably in our office and enjoy your favorite music or podcast.

One-visit crowns with CEREC® means no goopy impressions or hassles with temporary crowns. Our patients love the convenience of having their crown completed in a single visit.

Learn more about CEREC® dental crown technology.

Dental Composite Fillings

A dental filling is generally recommended when a tooth has minor damage from tooth decay. The goal of a dental filling is to rebuild the tooth surface to its previous form to stop the decay process and avoid further damage. This also allows the tooth to function normally when biting or chewing food.

Dental composite material is a blend of soft plastics that contain a hardening agent. Dr. Thomas uses dental composite materials for small fillings in front teeth (also known as dental bonding) and to restore the chewing surfaces of back (posterior) teeth. Composite filling materials are available in a wide range of natural-looking tooth shades; Dr. Thomas will customize your fillings to blend seamlessly with your smile.

To place the composite filling, Dr. Thomas will remove the decayed area and prepare the tooth to retain the filling. After shaping the composite material to the tooth, he activates the hardening process with a special curing light to complete the restoration.

In the past, dentists filled and sealed cavities exclusively using a silver and mercury amalgam. Unfortunately, these fillings (or restorations) often weaken teeth due to the large amount of the original tooth that has to be removed. Today's dentistry has increasingly turned to composite fillings as a strong, safe and more natural looking alternative.

Root Canals

The inside of a tooth contains nerves and blood vessels that are housed within the pulp chamber and extend into the tooth roots. The nerve provides contains stimuli receptors that send response signals from the tooth (such as hot and cold sensitivity or toothache pain) via the nerves in the jaw bone to the brain.

Although the tooth nerve is protected by tooth structure, it is actually quite vulnerable if exposed to decay or infection or damaged by trauma (like a car accident or sports injury).

Some patients have very heavy teeth grinding habits, known as bruxism. If not managed with a bite guard appliance or other dental treatments, chronic teeth grinding can wear through tooth enamel and cause tooth nerve damage.

What is a Root Canal?

When the tooth nerve is damaged, it must be removed to prevent a painful tooth abscess; this procedure is known as a root canal. Root canals are not as scary as the movies make them seem - tooth pain occurs when the nerve becomes infected; the pain is greatly alleviated almost immediately following the root canal procedure.

After getting the area comfortably numb with local anesthetic, Dr. Thomas will make a small access opening into the tooth pulp chamber and remove the damaged nerve tissue using small dental instruments. The inside walls of the tooth are disinfected and sealed with a medicated filling material to complete the root canal and help prevent re-infection.

Dr. Thomas will place a dental crown over the tooth following the root canal procedure to protect it from further damage.

In some cases, Dr. Thomas may refer patients to a root canal specialist, an endodontist. The endodontist performs the root canal therapy and Dr. Thomas restores the tooth with a dental crown.

Dental Bridges

Our teeth are uniquely engineered to fit together, making it possible to chew food and speak clearly. When a tooth is lost, this creates an open space. The natural pressure created by the bite will eventually cause the nearby teeth to shift and move. The opposing tooth (upper/lower) will also ‘super-erupt’ into the open space due to lack of resistance. The result is an increased risk of tooth fractures or further tooth loss due to improper bite alignment.

With the exception of third molars (wisdom teeth), Dr. Thomas recommends replacement of missing permanent teeth with a dental bridge, implant or removable denture.

What is a dental bridge?

A dental bridge is a device used to fill the space where a tooth has fallen out or been removed. A typical bridge consists of a pontic (a filler tooth) that is attached to two neighboring abutments (crowns). Dr. Thomas designs the dental bridge to be fabricated by the dental laboratory or milled in our office using CEREC® technology. Once complete, the bridge is permanently bonded to the abutment teeth.

Dental bridge materials are selected based on the position of the bridge in the mouth; a bridge that replaces a front tooth is made of natural-looking ceramics to match the other teeth, a bridge in the back of the mouth that needs to withstand chewing may be designed using a combination of metal and ceramics for added strength and durability.

Dental Implants

Dr. Richard Thomas works closely with implant specialists, oral surgeons and periodontists, to plan and restore dental implants at our Savannah dental practice. If you have missing teeth or loose dentures, you may be a candidate for a dental implant.

What is a dental implant?

A dental implant is a small titanium cylinder that is surgically placed by the implant specialist in the jaw bone in the location of the missing tooth. As the area heals, the bone grows around the implant, a process called osseointegration. Within a few months the implant becomes firmly anchored in the jaw bone.

A dental implant may be restored with a dental crown to replace a single missing tooth, or, it may serve as an abutment for a dental bridge to replace one or more teeth. Dr. Thomas and the implant specialist may plan multiple implants to secure a denture, sometimes called ‘all on four’ or ‘all on six’. An implant denture is designed with attachments that lock onto the patient's dental implants. Patients that have struggled with loose dentures for years are delighted in how much their ability to smile, laugh and chew is improved with implant dentures.

Dentures

When a patient is missing multiple teeth or has lost all of their teeth, a partial or complete denture may be recommended to restore the patient's ability to chew and smile normally. Dr. Thomas works closely with patients that have missing multiple teeth to design a custom denture that fits properly and has a natural appearance.

Types of Dentures

Dentures may be designed to replace some, or all of the missing teeth in a dental arch (upper or lower). A complete denture replaces all of the teeth and a partial denture is used when there are some natural teeth still present.

An ‘overdenture’ is used when the teeth are in poor condition but the roots of the teeth and gum tissue are stable. The overdenture is placed over the tooth roots, which are re-shaped and covered with metal caps to stop the decay process. By retaining the existing tooth roots, the gum tissue and bone does not recede as quickly as with traditional dentures; this is an advantage to the overdenture patient because the denture fits better and does not require relines as frequently as a standard denture.

Implant dentures attach to dental implants that are placed in the patient's jawbone. The dental implants stabilize the denture and also help with retention of bone and soft tissue.

If you are looking for answers to your challenges with missing or broken teeth, Dr. Richard Thomas can help you explore options to restore your dental health. Please Contact Dental Designs of Savannah to schedule a New Patient Comprehensive Exam & Consultation.