We pride ourselves on offering the most complete, advanced dental services & care possible in a comfortable setting. Our goal is to alleviate anxiety and help our patients (especially young ones) become familiar with dental care. Your experience at Downtown Dental will begin with a comprehensive exam to ensure all your needs are identified. From this, we go beyond check ups and cleanings—although those are the fundamentals of good oral care. Once your needs are determined, we will consult with you on each procedure so that you can make an informed decision.
Our office is designed with you in mind! You really can have an enjoyable experience at the dentist. We provide our patients with ultra-comfortable chairs, sunglasses to tame the bright office lights, XM radio, and televisions with headphones in each operating area. This is especially helpful for patients who may be nervous about visiting the dentist – minimizing any discomfort and giving them something to pay attention to can greatly reduce anxiety.
We offer a variety of dental procedures and services to keep our patients’ smiles healthy and bright. Click on the links below to learn more about the services that Downtown Dental provides. Our Services comprise of cosmetic dentistry, periodontal disease treatment, restorative dentistry, and preventative care.
Your mouth is an incredible part of your body, working with precision to help you eat and speak. Like a machine, they are designed to work with all parts intact—that includes each and every one of your teeth. Missing teeth can cause a myriad of problems, from gum disease to speech problems to “sinking” in your face (your back teeth support your cheeks and lips; losing them can stress your facial muscles and cause them to droop). For your mouth to function effectively, missing teeth should be replaced as quickly as possible.
A bridge is a method of “filling the gap” where a missing tooth once was. Bridges made of varying materials (often porcelain fused to metal) are molded to fit where the tooth is absent. The bridge is attached to restore full functionality and appearance to the patient.
There are two types of bridges available: fixed (also known as fixed partial denture) and removable. As the name implies, fixed bridges are permanently attached to the abutment (adjacent) teeth and can only be removed by your dentist. Crowns can be placed on the abutment teeth, or artificial teeth can be bonded directly to the abutment teeth for fixed bridge work. Removable bridges are attached using small clasps or precision attachments. These bridges can be removed and cleaned. Fixed bridges offer much more stability and strength than removable and can be brushed as usual.
The importance of filling in for missing teeth is very high. Stress on your remaining teeth, gums, and soft tissues can cause extreme discomfort and even disease. Missing teeth can make chewing and eating extremely difficult, and you may not be able to chew your food enough for good digestion. Many patients with absent teeth also develop speech problems and do not enunciate properly. And for many, the appearance of a full set of teeth is important for their appearance and confidence. With today’s advances in dental work, we can ensure that your bridges are effective and attractive.
Dental implants are one of the options for the restoration of lost teeth. These implants are very small titanium posts (the same materials used for other surgical implants, such as repairing severely fractured bones). The posts are surgically placed into the jaw, where they fuse with your bone structure to create a foundation for artificial teeth—essentially, creating a titanium “root” for your new artificial teeth. Because the posts are fused with your jaw, the teeth attached feel and function just like your natural teeth. They can provide a more stable structure for your jaw and face, prevent deterioration, and allow you to eat and speak exactly as you would with regular teeth.
If this is the choice you make for replacing missing teeth, we’ll perform a radiographic exam to ensure the integrity of your jaw and identify important nerves and structures, and ask you series of health and history questions. When we know that you’re a good candidate for the surgery, we’ll refer to you an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon or a Periodontist to perform the implant surgery. Depending on the type of implant and your jaw health, artificial teeth can be placed onto the implants either immediately, or after allowing your tissues to heal and the bones to fuse with the implant, anywhere from 2-6 months. Because this procedure is more complex and specific to each patient, we encourage you to come in for an evaluation and visit with our staff to answer any questions you might have.
Patients can lose most or all of their teeth for a variety of reasons. The most common is periodontal disease (gum disease) and tooth decay. Often, these problems occur from inconsistent oral hygiene and poor nutrition. When this happens, complete dentures are created to restore the patient’s ability to chew and speak properly.
Dentures are appliances molded to fit each individual’s mouth, and are made of various materials. Upper dentures have a flesh-colored center piece that covers all or most of the palate (the roof of your mouth).
Lower dentures are U-shaped and allow space for full usage of the tongue. In both pieces, the teeth are typically cast in porcelain, plastic, or both and are set in acrylic. They are removable, and must be cleaned with special solutions. Any remaining teeth also must be removed. In some cases, the gums and tissues are allowed to fully heal before the dental appliance can be worn. In the case of an immediate denture, teeth are extracted the denture is placed in right away, allowing the tissues to heal under the denture’s application.
Over time, the fit and function of the dental appliance will change, making regular check-ups important for denture patients. Gum lines shift and recede, and jaw bones can adjust and move. Patients must also be diligent about cleaning and care to prevent gum disease, just like patients with natural teeth. Regularly scheduled checkups are a must!
Fillings, or more formally, dental restorations, are performed on teeth which have lost function, integrity, or morphology. These teeth need to be “filled” with a strong material to replace the missing tooth structure. The loss of structure is most often due to caries (cavities) or trauma—such as biting down on something solid while chewing and breaking your tooth. The restorative materials used in a filling can be made of various materials, but dental composite is the most widely-used and effective material today.
Dental composite
Dental composite, or “tooth-colored” restorations, are fillings made from synthetic resins which are bonded to the patients tooth with a very strong adhesive. There are many advantages to these restorations. Because less composite can be used, the fit and mouth feel of these fillings is far superior. They can also be used effectively for serious caries or trauma where much of the tooth has been lost. Thanks to advances in bonding technology, this allows a dentist to perform a more conservative filling, meaning less structure is removed to prepare the tooth. Acid etching allows the dentist to remove only microscopically small amounts of enamel to roughen the surface for bonding. The new bonding technologies help restore teeth to their original integrity and strength. These composites are also much more pleasing in appearance than traditional silver fillings. Contact Downtown Dental today to learn how we can take away the tooth pain and restore your smile.
Just as helmets are essential to protect an athlete from head trauma, mouthguards are absolutely necessary to prevent damage to the teeth during sports. No athlete, no matter their age, should be without a mouthguard for any sport which could cause impact to the head and face. Modern appliances are extremely comfortable and custom-fit to each patient. The protection they provide is important, as teeth can be permanently damaged or even knocked out entirely in many sports. Store-bought mouthgaurds can be bulky and uncomfortable, and many young people refuse to wear them because of their fit. A custom mouthguard, now much more affordable and innovative, is easy to get—just see us at Downtown Dental Services.
Your teeth have fissures, grooves, and pits that are hard to clean, which makes them prone to decay. This is because the foods you eat tend to stick in them over time and even the most hyped toothbrush may not be able to clean them out. To solve this problem, Downtown Dental provides the dental sealants to fill up these grooves and pits.
Dental sealants are placed on the top of the back teeth grooves and front teeth pits to help create a smooth surface that is easier to clean. The sealants also prevent the sticking of foods on the teeth, which prevents the decay of teeth and development of other dental issues.
Sealants are an excellent way to prevent cavities and dental caries that make it hard for you to maintain good dental care. We provide a way for you to maintain a healthy oral cavity with reduced formation and accumulation of plaque. However, having dental sealants does not mean the end of your dental care routine. You have to brush your teeth regularly and use floss for good dental health.
Dental sealants are an excellent option for you to help limit dental decay that may cause an unpleasant odor and oral cavities. Dental decay is especially common with molars and premolars because they are the most susceptible to the deposition of plaque. As a preventive treatment for your dental work, pit and fissure sealants act as a barrier between your teeth and the bacteria that may result in cavities. With the sealants, the teeth are protected from any bacteria present in the food that you eat.
The effectiveness and efficiency of using dental sealants is enhanced if they are used on children before they grow adult teeth. We advise that you consider taking your child for dental sealant treatment as soon as the molar teeth begin to grow. Bacteria in your mouth eat away at the tooth surface and tend to cause the loss of minerals from teeth, making them weak. This skews the balance of minerals provided by fluoride and saliva causing tooth decay. Before teeth decay, dental caries occur on the teeth surface due to the accumulation of plaque.
Sealants, therefore, are recommended to help prevent cavities. The sealant treatment should be done before your teeth decay causing long-term dental issues like cavities. Dental cavitation is a condition that occurs when holes form on your teeth due to rapid bacterial work.
Teeth whitening is more than a passing trend created by celebrities. It's a valuable service offered by Downtown Dental year-round. We treat the discoloration and yellowing of our patients' teeth upon request. The amount of bleaching that is done depends on the amount of staining that is present on the enamel. It may take us more than one session to fully brighten a patient's smile. In fact, we customize the service based on men and women's needs. Some prefer to whiten some teeth. Others want their entire smile brightened.
The amount of teeth whitening that takes place is up to the patient. When the discoloration is too severe, we recommend veneers. They're fitted over a patient's teeth and look like a person's natural smile. It's the most cost-effective option for people who have spent a lifetime smoking, drinking dark beverages or taking certain types of medication.
Bleaching has long-term effects but does require routine whitening services if a patient smokes, drinks or takes some medications as noted above. The benefits of this service are numerous. Not only do bright white teeth improve a person's appearance, studies have shown that it makes people think they're younger, too!
A bright, white smile gives a face an instant facelift. It restores our patients' confidence and provides them with opportunities they may not have had before. The process is painless, affordable and an investment that produces noticeable results with white teeth. Some of the other benefits that come with whitening services include expert knowledge. Our dentists believe in empowering our patients by giving them the information they need to maintain their bright, white smile. This prevents future issues with discoloration and yellowing.
The level of satisfaction a person feels with our teeth whitening services is noted in the testimonials and reviews we receive from patients. They know that Downtown Dental Services puts them and their needs first. The right dental services treat patients like family. They build long-time relationships with them. That's how we do it with the men and women that visit our office.
We go the extra mile to make sure that they receive the care they deserve from our dental professionals. If a patient is looking for a new dentist because they've just moved to the area, we want to be the first name that comes to mind. We also want our patients to refer family and friends to us. We want to brighten their smiles, too. Since a smile is a calling card and often the first thing a person sees on another person, it's important for everyone's teeth to look their very best!
Another service that we offer our patients is Zoom Whitening. It is among the most popular whitening techniques available. It can only be done by a professional who has access to variable-intensity light technology. What's impressive about this whitening process is that is customized for each patient. Depending on their specific needs, Zoom Whitening can make teeth up to eight shades whiter in a single application. Desensitizers are regulated for each patient, too, making the process pain-free. Zoom Whitening is scheduled for 2 hours in our office to allow a total of 4 sessions, if that's what the patient desires. It doesn't matter how yellow or dull a person's teeth are initially, we work magic on all types of smiles.
Don't let a dull smile halt progress. Contact Downtown Dental Services to set up an appointment to have teeth bleached or whitened using Zoom Whitening. We're committed to serving you and providing you with the million dollar smile you admire on other people.
There are many reasons why a tooth may need to be removed. The most common Tooth extractions are of your wisdom teeth, the back four molars which appear in your mid-to-late teen years. Wisdom teeth which have broken through the gums can sometimes be removed through extraction. Impacted teeth, or those still under the tissue, must be removed surgically.
Other common reasons for extractions include severely decayed teeth and teeth that have been irreparably broken. Some have very advanced periodontal disease, which sometimes means that more than one tooth must be removed.Young teens sometimes have teeth removed before they begin orthodontic treatment (braces and retainers).
Because all your teeth are designed to fit, move, and work together, the removal of teeth can impact their function and your health. Teeth can shift to compensate for the gap, your jaw may move out of place, and you may experience trouble chewing all or certain foods. With this in mind, we evaluate the outcome of tooth removal and work with patients to determine the best next steps to maintain optimal oral health.
What are Veneers? Many of us feel self-conscious about our smiles. For some, it’s as simple as whitening our teeth. But for many, gaps, crooked teeth, severe discoloration, and other issues create anxiety and dissatisfaction. At Downtown Dental Services, we believe everyone should feel confident when showing off their happiest smile. Dental, or porcelain veneers, are a simple, extremely effective option to correct these problems.
Downtown Dental
623 Quincy St Ste 103
Rapid City, SD 57701
