Learn more about the dental care services we offer

Learn more about our dental care services

Children’s dentistry

Children's dentistry

Our caring and compassionate staff make going to the dentist a positive experience for the child.

Early education, oral hygiene and regular dental visits can help your child maintain lifetime of good dental health. At Carrum Downs Dental Care we provide comprehensive dental care and education for all children from infancy to adolescence.

Preventative dentistry

At Carrum Downs Dental Care we place a big emphasis on preventative dentistry.

Through regular dental examinations, scaling and cleaning, we can help you prevent issues like gum disease (known as gingivitis or periodontitis) and tooth decay.

For most people a 6 monthly preventative visit can help you stay free of any dental issues. Our dentists can give advice on oral hygiene and healthy eating at home that will also help you maintain a healthy smile.

Cosmetic dentistry

With today’s advanced dentistry, you no longer have to settle for stained, chipped, misshapen teeth, or gaps. Our dentists can give you choices to help you smile with confidence.

Cosmetic Dentistry includes a variety of dental procedures to improve the appearance of your teeth and smile. At Carrum Downs Dental Care we can help you achieve a healthy, beautiful smile you can be proud of.

Crowns

A dental crown is a tooth-shaped cap, generally made of ceramic or porcelain and precious metal that is placed over a tooth to restore its shape, size and strength.

Crowns are often placed on teeth that have broken, had root canal treatment or are misshaped and discolored. Crowns are made to match your other teeth so that no one would notice it is not a natural tooth.

Bridges

A dental bridge is one option that can be used to replace a missing tooth. As with a crown, a bridge is generally generally made of ceramic or porcelain and precious metal.

There are several types of bridges but most work by being attached to the adjacent teeth of the missing tooth. Bridges require shaping of the teeth surrounding a missing tooth. Crowns are then placed on the shaped teeth and attached to an artificial tooth (called a pontic).

Veneer

A dental veneer is a thin layer of material placed over a tooth, to improve the appearance of a tooth/teeth or to protect the tooth’s surface from damage. Veneers can improve the appearance of discolored teeth, a gappy or slightly crooked smile or misshapen teeth.

Generally veneers are made from ceramic, porcelain or a composite resin material, which is bonded to the front of teeth. Veneers are an excellent alternative to crowns. They provide a much more conservative approach to changing a tooth’s color, size or shape.

Dental implants

Dental implants are one of the newest options for replacing missing or badly diseased teeth. A dental implant is an artificial tooth root and crown that is placed into your jaw. By replacing missing teeth you can greatly improve the function of your teeth and appearance of your smile.

Implants can range from a single-tooth replacement to a complete upper and lower replacement, to replace dentures. A dental implant replaces both the lost natural tooth and its root and provides several advantages over other tooth replacement options.

In addition to looking and functioning like a natural tooth, a dental implant replaces a single tooth without sacrificing the health of neighbouring teeth. Dental implants are made of titanium and the crowns that goes above the gum on the implant are usually made of ceramic, porcelain and precious metal.

Endodontics (Root canal)

Endodontics or root canal treatment is a dental procedure that replaces a tooth’s damaged or infected nerve with a filling so that you are able to keep your natural tooth. Damage to the nerve may be caused by untreated dental decay, decay beneath a filling, tooth damage due to trauma, tooth grinding (bruxism) or gum disease.

The root canal procedure involves removing the infected or damage nerve from the root canal over a series of dental visits. The root canals are sterilised and shaped to a form that can be completely sealed with a filling material to prevent further infection. Afterwards a crown or large filling to restore or protect the tooth may be necessary, as a tooth after undergoing treatment may be more brittle.

Wisdom teeth

Wisdom teeth are the back molars that erupt last, sometimes in late teens or early 20s. They may cause oral health or dental problems, including overcrowding or impaction (eg the teeth don’t fit into the jaw line). An x-ray is required to check the severity of the impaction. Common problems include gum infections and tooth decay. The most common treatment is to have the wisdom teeth removed.

Depending on the severity of the impaction, your dentist may remove them in the clinic, or refer you to an oral surgeon.

Fissure Sealants

Fissure sealants are a preventive treatment where a plastic material is placed in the pits and fissures (deep grooves in the chewing surfaces) of molars, premolar teeth, and sometimes the rear of the front teeth. Food can stay trapped in deep grooves, causing decay.

Fissure sealants form a shield that stops food and bacteria getting in those grooves. They are a safe and painless way of protecting the teeth from decay.

Orthodontics

Orthodontics is an area of dentistry specialising in treating the alignment of teeth and jaws. With orthodontics your dentist can correct these issues and restore better function and appearance of your teeth and smile. At Carrum Downs Dental Care we offer

conventional fixed braces,
clear/tooth coloured braces (less visible),
as clear aligners (invisible braces)
orthodontic fixed and removable appliances.

Mouthguards / Splints

Anyone participating in a sport with a risk of contact to the face should wear a mouthguard. At Carrum Downs Dental Care, we custom make a mouthguard for you in the colour of your choice. A mouthguard helps absorb shocks to the face, which might otherwise result in chipped or broken teeth, tooth loss, and, in severe cases, concussion or broken jaw, which can lead to long and potentially expensive treatment.

An occlusal splint is a slim hard acrylic custom made guard fitted to the upper jaw and covering the biting surfaces of your upper teeth. It is designed to be worn at night, to aid in the treatment of grinding of the teeth (bruxism). Bruxisim can cause pain in your jaw joints, headaches, breaking and chipping of teeth and in severe cases even cause your tooth to die, leading to needing a root canal. An occlusal splint will not stop you from grinding or clenching but guides the jaw into a neutral position, relieving pressure on the jaw joint and effectively protecting your teeth.