St Annes Dental Clinic provides a comprehensive range of expert NHS dental treatments to the local community of Blackpool. Whether patients require routine care, restorative solutions, or cosmetic enhancements, our clinic provides dental care tailored to individual needs, ensuring excellent results and patient satisfaction.
Fillings
Fillings are restorations that are required when tooth tissue has been damaged due to dental caries commonly referred to as ‘tooth decay’. Caries is a process caused by acid producing bacteria that live on tooth surfaces.
The acid causes damage to tooth structure which may lead to future problems. The bacteria and decay needs to be removed and restored by a filling in order to prevent more damage to tooth structure.
The most common type of filling material used is amalgam as this is highly durable and can withstand the grinding motions required by your molar and premolar teeth. There is also a material that can be used as a restoration known as composite. This is tooth coloured and can be matched to the colour of your teeth. These are commonly used in the front teeth that show when you smile. The composite material isn’t as durable as amalgam, therefore this isn’t always suitable for molar and premolar teeth.
Crowns
When a tooth has been heavily filled it may be weak and susceptible to cracking. A good way of strengthening it further is to place a crown on it.
The tooth is prepared by removing a small amount from around the tooth, a crown is then made to fit on top of the tooth or a ‘cap’ as it is commonly called. This is a permanent restoration and they act very much like natural teeth – the colour will be very similar as the laboratory match the material to your current tooth colour.
Bridges
You may find yourself in a situation where you have a missing tooth – this may be due to its loss through an accident or through tooth decay.
The result is a gap which can be left in the mouth but most people find it unsightly and would prefer for it to be filled. In this instance a bridge could be provided to disguise the gap.
A bridge is fixed onto a neighbouring tooth or teeth either side of the gap and is fixed with cement. They act very much like natural teeth – the colour will be very similar as the laboratory match the material to your current tooth colour.
There are a number of different types of bridges; your dentist will discuss with you the one most suited to your particular situation.
Dentures
There are different types of dentures, but the most common types are acrylic (plastic) dentures and chrome/cobalt dentures which have a metal base framework and plastic teeth. Dentures can look very natural and your dentist will advise you on the one most suitable for your situation.
Root Canal Treatment
All teeth have a nerve and blood supply located in the centre of the tooth, known as the pulp. This may get infected due to advanced decay or trauma causing the nerve to die.
When this happens, the infected nerve needs to be removed from the tooth to prevent any further problems. Once the nerve has been removed from the infected root canals, a filling material is placed to close the canals and prevent reinfection. The tooth will then need a filling or crown on top to restore the original tooth shape.
Veneers
A veneer is a porcelain facing which covers the front surface of the tooth; they are mainly used to improve the appearance of the particular tooth, which is often an incisor tooth.
Veneers are used when a tooth has several fillings which do not match or have become stained; they can also be used to disguise gaps between teeth. Veneers are simply cemented onto the tooth. They are less destructive than having a crown as less tooth tissue needs to be prepared.
Gum Disease & Periodontal Treatments
One of the biggest causes of tooth loss in the adult population is often caused by gum disease. This is caused by plaque which is a film of bacteria which forms on the teeth everyday.
When this is not removed efficiently enough, the gums start to become swollen and can bleed on brushing. This is known as gingivitis (gum disease can develop) when this becomes more advanced chronic periodontal smoking and certain types of medication can also make gum disease worse.Your dentist will check for signs of gum disease and advise you on the appropriate treatments. If necessary a referral can be made to our specialist in periodontology (gum treatments) here at the clinic.
Implants
Dental implants are one of the dental treatments available to replace one or several missing teeth. A dental implant is essentially a substitute for a natural root and commonly it is screw or cylinder shaped. Each implant is placed into a socket carefully drilled at the precise location of the intended tooth. If an implant has a screw-thread on its outer surface it can be screwed into position and if it does not, it is usually tapped into place.
The main aim during installation of any implant is to achieve immediate close contact with the surrounding bone. This creates an initial stability, which over time is steadily enhanced by further growth of bone into microscopic roughnesses on the implant surface.
In order to support replacement teeth, dental implants normally have some form of internal screw thread or post space that allows a variety of components to be fitted. Once fitted, these components provide the foundation for long-term support of crowns, bridges or dentures.
Almost all dental implants in use today are made from titanium or titanium alloy, materials that have been shown over many years to be well tolerated by the bone.
The terms ‘osseointegrated implants’ or ‘endosseous implants’ are widely used to describe dental implants that can develop and maintain a close union with bone in order to support replacement teeth.
Tooth Whitening
Home Whitening £235.00
Home Whitening involves making you some trays for you to wear over night which gradually whiten your teeth. This can be done at your own leisure and teeth can be lightened to your preference. It takes approximately two weeks of wearing the stents every other night to see the final result; teeth can be up to 10 shades lighter.
Many things we do on a regular basis can contribute to stained teeth. These include drinking red wine, tea and coffee and also smoking. We recommend no smoking, red wine or tea and coffee for 24 hours after bleaching.
This is a way of lightening your natural tooth colour using different whitening methods. Over time teeth can become darker and stained due to age, foods with colouring, tea, red wine etc. Teeth whitening as it is commonly called can be carried out using two different methods.
The first choice is home whitening which involves making stents for you to wear overnight which gradually whiten your teeth – the positives of doing this at home is that it can be done at your own leisure and can be lightened to your preference.
If you would prefer quicker dental treatments, you could opt for the Zoom!® whitening, this is all done in the dental chair and takes up to 2 hours to complete. The positives of Zoom bleaching is that it isn’t very time consuming and the results are instantaneous.
FAQ
There is no reason why dental treatments should hurt. If there is a chance the procedure may cause you pain, then we will administer a local anaesthetic.
All surgery procedures have different appointment lengths. The dentist or dental nurse will be pleased to inform you of the appointment length required to complete your surgery.
The number of visits you will require depends solely on the surgery and dental treatments you require. The dentist will discuss a treatment plan with you, and advise you of the number of visits that will be required, and the explain the stages.
Yes, all of our dental surgeons are fully qualified, and have over 60 years combined experience. We are also proud to have some of the most highly qualified practitioners carrying out NHS dental treatments in the north of England.
You are not alone. However you have no need to worry. We have highly skilled, experienced dental surgeons, and we are always happy to discuss your dental treatments, and put you mind at ease. Please mention your concerns / fears to your dentist, and we will reassure you at every stage.
You can normally eat after one hour of having treatment. If we have had to use a local anaesthetic you may have a numb feeling for up to 3-4 hours. We reccomend that you take extra care following a local anaesthetic when eating or drinking hot items.
Care is taken to ensure that anyone who is a registered patient in pain will be seen within 24 Hours. If you are in severe pain outside of normal hours call (01253) 955200 for the Emergency Dental Service (EDS) which is situated on Whitegate Drive in Blackpool.
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