Gyro gets some new teeth!

If your choppers need a tuneup and you live anywhere near Seattle, Washington, USA, this is where you want to go:

I'm generally not too keen on visits to the dentist, but this time was pretty interesting. I asked Dr. Laura Konen what she thought about me bringing a camera and snapping pictures while she worked on my teeth. She was all for it. Is that cool or what?!?

I had a space in my mouth where a baby tooth had fallen out and a replacement never grew in. The big molar next to the space eventually got a crack in it and became real sensitive to hot or cold, so my teeth were due for some maintenance.

To solve the problem of the cracked tooth, Dr. Konen would need to grind it down and put a cap over it. Since this same work is also required to prepare a tooth as a "retainer" (a foundation tooth for a bridge) I decided to go ahead and have the bridge installed. That way, the space would be filled in and I'd have a new surface to chew food with, which is good because chewing food ranks quite high on my list of favorite activities. Generally, bridge installations are done over three visits:

The first visit is mostly preparation.

• X-rays are taken to be sure that everything is as it seems.
• A mold of the existing teeth is taken to construct an acrylic or plastic shell that will be used to make a temporary bridge on the second visit.

The second visit is where the bulk of the work is performed.

• The teeth that will support the bridge are shaped. This is the cool part.
• Another mold is taken; this time of the bridge retainer teeth that the permanent bridge will be cemented to.
• The temporary bridge shell is cut to fit, filled with a quick-setting cement, and pressed into place.
• The temporary bridge is removed and any excess cement is ground off.
• The temporary bridge is cemented into place using an adhesive that will facilitate removal in 10 to 14 days.

The third visit wraps it up.

• The temporary bridge is removed.
• The permanent bridge, back from the lab, is cemented into place.

Thanks to the cool folks at Greenlake Family Dentistry for showing me, my camera, tape recorder, and all my questions a good time, and thanks especially for the excellent work on my mouth.
You can find 'em at the south end of Greenlake in Seattle; 4701 Midvale Ave N, 206-633-3686