Bernstein Dental Care: Blog

Flossing is important when it comes to your oral health. Flossing removes about 40% of the bacteria and plaque that forms on your teeth. Each tooth you have has five surfaces, two of them are cleaned by flossing. At Bernstein Dental Care, we advise our patients to floss every day. Flossing removes the plaque that generates acid and can cause cavities that put you at a greater risk of gum disease. We encourage our patients to use floss that is 15 to 18inches long in a ‘C’ shape for the best flossing job. If you have trouble flossing we recommend you use plaque removers that allow you to floss between your teeth with one hand. While there are different types of flosses out there, the most important thing is that you are flossing. We caution our patients do not worry if there is blood when you are flossing, it just means your gums are inflamed because of plaque buildup. Don’t forget to floss every day to maintain good oral health! Dr. Paul Bernstein runs Bernstein Dental Care at 350 91 st...

At Bernstein Dental Care LLC, we advise parents to start cleaning their children’s teeth as soon as their baby teeth develop. Every February is National Children’s Dental Month which is sponsored by the American Dental Association to raise awareness for children’s oral health. The most chronic disease for children is tooth decay which is preventable through practicing good oral health care. When your children’s baby teeth develop, you should clean their teeth with a soft-bristled toothbrush and a dab of toothpaste. We recommend soft-bristled toothbrushes for children because they are gentler on your gums and teeth. The cause of tooth decay is when plaque and bacteria form on your teeth and ultimately forms cavities. Tooth decay is preventable by taking care of your teeth and brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste. When possible, we encourage all of our patients to eat a healthy diet and limiting your consumption of sugar and acidic that can damage your teeth. Don’t forget to bri...

If you break a tooth, you can count on Bernstein Dental Care in Bay Ridge for restorations. We are experienced providers of implant-supported crowns, but we work hard to save natural teeth. Although nobody plans to chip or crack a crown, there are some steps we hope our patients will remember to take in order to make a successful restoration likelier. In ordinary circumstances, it is the molars that are most vulnerable to breaking. They have a large surface to distribute bite force across, but some things are still too hard for them and break their cusps or cause them to split down the middle. Our other teeth cannot handle nearly as much force and are likely to break or tilt if they are used for chewing. When a tooth breaks, patients should rinse their mouths with salt water. They should cover the broken tooth with sugar-free chewing gum or if they have any nearby, orthodontic wax. The smallest cracks, which are called craze lines, are a cosmetic issue and may be covered with veneers. ...

At Dr. Paul Bernstein’s Bay Ridge dental office, we assist patients suffering from jaw pain and teeth grinding as a result of temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ). Night guards are a simple solution to both teeth grinding and throat obstructions, but they require daily maintenance to prevent bacterial build-up. There are cleaning solutions approved for night guards by the American Dental Association, and anti-bacterial soap works well, too. But most night guard manufacturers still recommend brushing it daily after removing it in the morning. Patients should take care to avoid using a hard-bristled toothbrush (which isn’t appropriate for anything dental-related) and to not use a cleaning solution that is reinforced with minerals for teeth. Extra fluoride could scratch the night guard, creating a home for bacteria. The water should also be room-temperature to eliminate the risk of warping. The biggest difference between cleaning a night guard and a denture is that dentures should alway...

There are signs that indicate oral cancer such as swelling, lumps, trouble swallowing, thick patches, and loose teeth not due to periodontitis. Oral cancer screening is an examination performed at Bernstein Dental Care to look for signs of cancer or precancerous conditions in your mouth. The goal of oral cancer screening is to identify mouth cancer early, when there is a greater chance for successful treatment. If warning signs of oral cancer are found, the next step is to perform a biopsy. A biopsy is a process of removing tissue from the suspicious area by cutting or scraping cells from the mouth that are viewed under a microscope and diagnosed to see if oral cancer is present. A pathologist is the one who inspects the cells under a microscope to see if they are cancerous. If cancer is there, a biopsy will help to determine if cancer began at the suspicious area or if it started somewhere else in the body and spread to the suspicious area. Dr. Paul Bernstein recommends anybody who is...

At Bernstein Dental Care, Dr. Paul Bernstein, DDS performs root canals to save and repair teeth that are badly damaged or infected.  A root canal procedure involves removing any inflamed or infected tissue, and thoroughly cleaning the root canal system.  In most root canal cases, the tooth heals and doesn’t require further treatment. When an infection won’t go away or the canals become re-infected, Dr. Paul Bernstein can perform an apicoectomy. An apicoectomy removes damaged tissue and seals a tooth’s root from any further infections.  The procedure involves a small incision in the gums, followed by removal of any infected tissue and finally the end of the root tip itself.  A root-end filling is placed there to act as a seal, preventing reinfection. The gum is sutured, and most patients only feel slight discomfort or swelling during healing.  If you have a tooth infection lingering after a root canal gone wrong, please contact us to discuss your treatment options. To learn more about t...

Diabetes doesn’t make gum disease inevitable, but it does mean that diabetic people need more dental support. At Bernstein Dental Care in Brooklyn’s Bay Ridge neighborhood, we hope that people with diabetes will feel comfortable coming to us for help with gum problems, and we wanted to explain more about why they are especially at risk. Gum disease is very common. Gingivitis, or “gum inflammation” is the body’s initial response to it and is characterized by redness and bleeding. People with diabetes have even higher rates of gingivitis than the general population. One of the consequences of uncontrolled high blood sugar is decreased efficacy of the immune system, but scientists are increasingly finding evidence that the bacteria that cause gum disease also interfere with the body’s glucose regulation, setting off a vicious circle. The more advanced form of gum disease, periodontitis, threatens the integrity of the gums, tooth roots, and surrounding jaw tissue. But periodontal intervent...