Are you accepting new patients? Yes! All three doctors are accepting new patients. Do you take my insurance? We take all insurances that are NOT PPO’s and HMO’s ­ all “traditional” or “fee-for-service” insurances. If I have a PPO or HMO dental insurance, can I still come to your office? Yes! We are “out of network” providers for nearly all dental insurance companies. This means that they usually reimburse at a lower rate (usually 50%) of treatment fees. What type of services do you offer? We offer: All aspects of preventive dentistry Adult and children’s comprehensive care Cosmetic dentistry (veneers, crowns, fillings, etc.) Bleaching Custom shades for all restorations Snoring appliances Implant placement & restorations Root canal therapy Crowns and bridges IV sedation Oral sedation / nitrous oxide sedation Oral surgery Pediatric care Geriatric care Special needs care Night grinding appliances Emergency care Trauma care 3rd molar extractions (wisdom teeth) How do I contact you? Our office is located at 1001 South Pueblo Boulevard, Pueblo, CO 81005 Our office phone number is 719.564.0990 What are your office hours? Our office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm. How much does it cost to be seen at your office as a new patient? Our new patient exam includes a comprehensive exam, in-depth medical and personal interview, full mouth x-rays (NOT a panoramc x-ray), and a custom treatment plan just for you. Our current fees for these services are approximately $170. Do you treat children in your office? Yes! All of our doctors are wonderful with children and take great pride in providing safe, exceptional dentistry for children AND adults. Do you use a “papoose” board or restraint devices on children? NO! Our practice philosophy is to treat children the way we want to be treated. We rely on children being cooperative while they are in our care. Do you allow parents to come back to the treatment room with their children? Yes! What we find is that after the first or second visit, most children and their parents are very comfortable in our office and do not need the parent in the treatment room, but they are certainly welcome at any time! (the way the office is designed, parents can also come behind the room and watch everything without the child knowing the parent is there). How do I get to your office? Our office is located at 1001 S. Pueblo Boulevard, in Pueblo, Colorado. We are located 4.5 miles south of the intersection of Pueblo Boulevard and Highway 50, between St. Clair Ave. and Red Creek Springs Road, on the west side of Pueblo Boulevard. If you have any questions, please phone our office for more detailed instructions. Click here to get driving directions! What is a dental implant? A dental implant is a titanium screw that is placed in the jaw bone, that acts like the root of a tooth and can be built upon to function like a normal tooth. Dental implants can replace 1 tooth or many teeth. Implants can also be placed as anchors for patients who have dentures to make them more stable. Are dental implants painful? Nearly all patients who have had dental implants tell us that having the tooth removed was more painful than having the dental implant placed. How long do dental implants take? Depending on the amount and type of bone available, it can range from 6 months to 2 years before the restorations are placed. An implant needs to heal 6 months before it can be restored with crowns or dentures. Some people don’t have enough bone, so they need bone grafting before dental implants can be placed. How long do dental implants last? Dental implants last a very long time. We know that if they have plenty of surrounding bone and favorable biting forces, implants last at least 20 years, and we expect them to last much longer than this. What is a bone graft? It is artificial bone that has been sterilized from cows or human cadavers, or even an artificial crystalline bone. It acts like a lattice for your body’s own bone-producing cells to crawl up and fill in with your OWN bone, while resorbing the original graft material. This takes 4-6 months, usually. How many times a year should I have my teeth cleaned? Most people should have their teeth cleaned at least 2 times per year. If you have gingivitis or periodontal disease, we may suggest you have your teeth cleaned 3 or even 4 times per year. When should my child see the dentist? The American Dental Association recommends children be seen for a “well-baby checkup” BEFORE their first birthday. If your child has not seen a dentist, we recommend a “well-baby checkup”, or an “introduction” appointment in our office. What is an “introduction” or “well-baby checkup”? In our office, we strongly believe in providing children with the most positive experiences possible! By seeing children early, we let them become acquainted with the office at their own pace. This also helps parents by answering their questions and gives them tools they can use at home in order to prevent dental decay in children. Do you offer dental sealants? Yes! Dental sealants are one of the most effective ways to prevent cavities from forming in the deep grooves of teeth. What is a dental sealant? A dental sealant is a preventive plastic coating placed into the deep grooves of teeth so that bacteria and food don’t stick in the gooves ­ creating cavities. Sealants are usually placed on back teeth, where the grooves tend to be deeper and harder to clean. Sealants are different from fillings because the tooth does not need to be cut on in order for them to be placed, and therefore patients do not need to be numb. What type of crowns do you offer? We offer traditional gold crowns, all-porcelain crowns and veneers, and a combination of the two called a porcelain fused to gold crown. We use the finest materials available and the best dental laboratory in the United States. What do you suggest for people who have fear of the dentist? Dr. Jamie Johnson has created an educational DVD called “Smiles for a Lifetime” which has been highly successful for children who have great anxiety in dental or medical settings. For adults, we offer oral sedation, nitrous oxide sedation and IV sedation for patients with extreme fear. Do you think Fluoride should be in the water? Usually, Yes! Our office provides free water fluoride testing for patients who have wells where they receive their drinking water. It is important that children between ages 0 ­ 2 years drink the CORRECT amount of fluoride ­ not too much, not too little. Ideally, 1.0 part per million is ideal for developing strong, healthy teeth. What type of toothpaste do you recommend? We recommend toothpaste WITHOUT “whitening” or “tartar-control” ingredients, because the added chemicals in these types of toothpastes tend to cause tissue problems in many people. How often should I brush and floss? This depends on how FREQUENTLY you eat and drink. If you tend to eat 3 meals a day, with minimal snacking or sipping on things (besides plain water), then brushing 2 times a day and flossing 1 time a day is adequate. However, if you eat smaller meals throughout the day, or sip on things such as soda or coffee, or suck on mints or gum, then you need to be brushing and flossing MUCH MORE!!! Is flossing really necessary? Flossing is the ONLY way to disrupt bacteria between your teeth, which is where most large cavities form on adults and children. Cavities BETWEEN the teeth tend to be much more destructive to the teeth than cavities formed on the biting surfaces of the teeth. And toothbrushing does NOT prevent cavities from forming BETWEEN the teeth. What type of bleaching do you offer? We offer 3 types of bleaching in our office: 1) custom-made trays which you use at home for 1-3 weeks 2) in-office bleaching where we place the bleach on specific teeth, which is especially good for small discolorations such as brown spots or isolated stains on the teeth 3) internal bleaching on teeth that have discolored due to root canal treatment If my teeth are sensitive can I bleach them? If your teeth are already sensitive, it is important to have a dentist assess them to see if you are a candidate for bleaching, because bleaching can make your teeth MORE sensitive. What is IV sedation? IV sedation is when an IV is started in a person’s arm, and drugs are administered into the IV to calm the patient and relieve anxiety for dental procedures. The patient almost never has recollection of the dental procedure performed. This differs from general anesthesia, because patients are awake, respond to verbal commands, and DO NOT NEED a tube placed into the throat to help them breathe. What is oral sedation? Oral sedation is when a patient swallows a prescription pill that is used to relieve anxiety. 30-40 minutes later, the patient feels more calm when undergoing dental procedures and very often does not remember the dental procedure itself. This differs from IV sedation because no IV needs to be started and the sedation is usually not as deep. Do you use mercury in your silver fillings? All silver fillings have a small amount of mercury in them. Next to gold, they are the longest-lasting material available and are especially good if you tend to get cavities frequently. If this is a concern to you, please talk to one of us about it. Do you place tooth-colored fillings? Yes, we place tooth-colored fillings, which are made of plastic and porcelain combined into a material which can be customized to the color of your teeth. Do you place veneers? Yes, we place beautiful cosmetic veneers, which are ALWAYS customized to the shade you desire. Do you do cosmetic dentistrty? Yes, all of us are expertly trained in all fields of cosmetic dentistry, including bleaching, porcelain veneers and crowns, implant dentistry, custom shade selection, and smile design. Do you do bondings? Yes, we place tooth-colored fillings, which are bonded to the teeth and made of plastic and porcelain combined into a material which can be customized to the color of your teeth. Do you submit my insurance claims or do I? As a service to our patients, we submit your dental insurance claims. Do you use nitrous (laughing gas)? Yes, we provide nitrous oxide to our patients who wish to use it. What do I do if my crown falls off? If you have a permanent crown that has come off, call our office right away so that we can assess it to make sure there isn’t decay present, and get it recemented for you. If you are out of town, an easy temporary fix is to place some Vaseline or toothpaste inside the crown and stick it back on your tooth for a day or two, being careful when eating not to swallow it. What do I do if my temporary crown falls off? If your temporary crown falls off, save it and call our office immediately so that we can get it recemented right away. If it isn’t recemented immediately, your permanent crown may not fit properly. If you are out of town, and easy temporary fix is to place some Vaseline or toothpaste inside the crown and stick it back on your tooth for a day or two, being careful when eating not to swallow it. What do I do if my child knocks his teeth loose? If your child knocks his teeth loose, call our office immediately! If you cannot reach us through the answering service, call our home telephone numbers which are listed in the phonebook. What do I do if my child knocks his teeth out? If your child knocks out a permanent tooth, immediately stick it back into the socket!!! Time is of the essence! (The difference in success is a few minutes!) Once you have the tooth in the socket, call us immediately at the office or at our homes (our phone numbers are in the phonebook). If you cannot reimplant the tooth yourself, place it in a small container of milk and be sure to bring it with you to the office or emergency room. How can I help my kids not be so fearful of the dentist? Dr. Jamie Johnson has created an educational DVD specifically for children, where other children model good behavior in the dental office and also at home. It’s called “Smiles for a Lifetime” and can be purchased on her website: www.thedentaldiva.com (or in our office). It was designed specifically for a patient in Dr. Jamie’s own practice who had a great deal of fear and overcame it by watching Dr. Jamie’s own son model good behavior while having his teeth cleaned in the dental office. What do you recommend if I have a strong fear of the dentist? If you have a strong fear of the dentist, please talk to us about it! We are here to help you! We have many treatment options available and will help inform you about options so that your experiences are great! Our goal is to provide you with the best dental experience you’ll ever have! What do you recommend for someone who snores? We offer many types of custom-made snoring and sleep-apnea appliances, which will help you sleep more soundly, and feel more rested. All of the appliances we make fit into the mouth and are very comfortable ­ made just for YOU! What do you recommend for someone who has sleep apnea? If you have sleep apnea, we suggest you see your physician, possibly a specialist (an ENT ­ ear-nose-throat specialist) for evaluation of the severity of your sleep apnea. There are many sleep-apnea and snoring appliances which may be a great help to you in minimizing or even eliminating your sleep apnea. Please talk to us about this. What do you recommend for someone who grinds their teeth? If you grind your teeth, we offer several options in our office. 1) a splint or bruxism appliance ­ which is a hard acrylic appliance that is custom-made to your bite. This type of appliance also helps with headaches, TMJ discomfort and popping, and also acts as a retainer for the teeth after braces. 2) a mouthguard ­ which is a thick rubber appliance that is custom-made to your bite. This type of appliance is not good for patients who tend to get headaches and have TMJ discomfort or popping. It is an excellent choice for people who are playing contact sports and also for children whose baby teeth and permanent teeth are changing. This type of appliance does NOT act as a retainer after having braces. 3) a thin mouthguard ­ which is a thin rubber appliance that is custom-made to your bite. This type of appliance is good for patients who are bleaching their teeth or who need to wear something to keep them from grinding their teeth, but it doesn’t last very long (usually 6 months to 1 year). This type of appliance does NOT act as a retainer after having braces. Do you have payment plans? We offer payment plans for major work done in our office. Please speak with one of our receptionists if you are interested. Do you take Mastercard or Visa? We take Mastercard and Visa for payment of dental services. Do you take credit card payments? Yes, we take Mastercard and Visa for payment of dental services. Do you offer a discount for paying in cash? Yes, we offer a 5% discount if you pay in full for your services at the time of treatment. Do you have a referral program? Yes, if you refer 10 patients (who come to see us as new patients), we will give you a Sonicare toothbrush. Are you members of the ADA? Yes, all 3 dentists are active members in the American Dental Association. How long will it take me to be seen in your office? The hardest appointments to get in our office are the first new-patient exam and the first cleaning appointment, as we pre-book all of our patients for their 6-month cleaning appointments. We also devote a great deal of time and energy to our new patients and this limits the amount of new people we can see in any given day. All 3 doctors are accepting new patients. What if I have a dental emergency? f you have a dental emergency, call our office immediately and if it is during business hours, we will be happy to assist you. If it is after office hours, the answering service will contact us, or you can also get our home numbers out of the phonebook. How often do you take x-rays? Routinely, we take full-mouth x-rays at every single new patient exam, which is a series of 18 films. These are only taken once every 5-10 years, as recommended by the ADA. Other than that, we take 4 “bitewing” x-rays once every year. If you have trouble with a specific area, then we will also likely take an x-ray of that specific area. Do you use custom shades on your cosmetic dentistry? Absolutely! We take custom shades on ALL of our dentistry!!! If you are having extensive work done or have a challenging shade, then we will request that you see our ceramist who makes a “still-life” drawing of your teeth at the laboratory in Denver. Do you perform root canals? Yes, all of our doctors are extremely skilled at performing root canal therapy. Do you perform orthodontic treatment? No, we do not perform any type of orthodontic treatment but have recommendations of fabulous orthodontists who we work closely with.   Copyright © 2006 by Family Smiles Company. All rights are reserved. | thedentaldiva.com