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January and February 2007What´s New at Savon
◄ Back to What´s New At Savon - Monthly Newsletter Home Page In every newsletter you will find a secret word or phrase. When you locate the word or phrase, copy the entire paragraph and paste it into an email along with your Savon membership ID number and your name.
Quote of the MonthOne of the most feared words in the english language is root canal.
Cohen's Corner - Straight talk from the Doctor -Crowns - Inlays - OnlaysInlays, Onlays, 3/4 Crowns, Ceramic, Porcelain, Precious Metal, Semi-Precious Metal: What Does It All Mean?Happy New Year! Here is hoping that your new year brings you nothing but happiness; now down to work. Crowns to the left of me, crowns to the right of me; what’s a patient to do? Now, through the literary genius of Cohen’s Corner, you the dental consumer will better understand what the dentist is trying to tell you. What’s an inlay? An inlay is a laboratory-fabricated dental restoration that is cemented into the tooth to replace missing tooth structure. An inlay goes in between the sides of the tooth very similar to the old ‘silver’ fillings the dentist use to put in your teeth. The reason an inlay is used instead of a filling is basically longevity. An inlay that is cemented into the tooth will last much longer than a ‘regular’ filling in a tooth. As long as there isn’t recurrent disease occurring around the restoration, it could last a lifetime. What’s an onlay? An onlay is almost exactly like an inlay except it covers and protects the sides of the tooth from fracturing by coming over the biting surface of the tooth and a few millimeters over the outer surface of the tooth to lock in the sides of the tooth. What’s a 3/4 Crown? A 3/4 crown is a crown that replaces roughly 3/4 of the tooth with crown material. Again, all these restorations are called indirect restorations because the tooth is prepared at the first appointment at which time a model of the tooth is taken and then, approximately two weeks later the restoration which has been fabricated at the laboratory is sized and cemented to the tooth. Again, the two main differences between an inlay, onlay, 3/4 crown and a ‘regular’ filling that the dentist places in usually one appointment is strength and durability. Like all dental restorations there is a right time and a wrong time to use certain materials on a tooth depending on what needs to be accomplished. This is where the training and expertise of the dentist comes into play. It is one of the dentist’s jobs to know what dental restoration is called for in what situation. It is another one of the dentist’s jobs to explain what needs to be done to solve the problem so that the patient can understand their options. Ceramic, Porcelain, Precious and Semi-precious Metals are just some of the different materials dental restorations are made out of. Ceramic and porcelain are basically tooth colored glass materials very similar to high grade porcelain china dishes. There is no metal used to make ceramic or porcelain dental restorations, and in my dental career of 33+ years I have never heard of a human being having an allergic reaction to these materials. Precious and semi-precious metals are basically different amalgamated metals that are used as either the finished dental restoration or a sub-base that tooth colored porcelain is baked onto to give the final restoration a tooth colored appearance for esthetics. Remember that when the dentist recommends different types of solutions to solve a dental problem, and you don’t understand why there is more than one solution to the problem, stop your dentist and ask to have this information explained to you. It is your mouth, your dental health, and your money that is being discussed so for heavens sake make sure you understand your choices.
Congratulations to our November, December and January winnersWinner of our November T. V. Drawing was Mr. Robert Woodenthal of Fort Worth TexasWinner of our December T. V. Drawing was Ms. Angeleta Crimson of Oakland California Winner of our January T. V. Drawing was Ms. Dawn Darby of Tucson Arizona We want to thank each and every one of our members for making this contest a great success.
Savon's Website is getting a makeoverIn the very near future you will be seeing a whole new look for our website. Our designers are working very hard and the beta version looks great. Our target date for going live will be around March 15th. We feel that the new look which will include audio and video help will make Savon even a greater value to all of our members.
Savon's ExpansionOur nationwide move has picked up a lot of steam and we are adding about 20 providers to your plan every week. As you travel around the country, simply log onto this website and check out the providers in the area that you are in. |
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