Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry
Advanced Services - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

Advanced Comprehensive Services

We offer advanced and comprehensive cosmetic, implant, and sedation dentistry services.

These services include but are not limited to:

  • Smile evaluations
  • Invisalign and traditional orthodontics (braces)
  • Endodontics (root canal therapy)
  • Laser dentistry
  • Implants, implant crowns and implant retained bridges and dentures
  • Same-day crowns

Each of our caring doctors is a general dentist. Each found special interest in different areas of dentistry. These interests target expertise and experience which together form a team that help you achieve your healthiest and best smile.

Dr. Mark Howell loves all aspects of dentistry. He has incorporated orthodontic treatment in his general practice for over 30 years. Evaluations provide for traditional orthodontic treatment, Invisalign, and interceptive therapy for growing children. He embraces new technology in dentistry which has improved the patient experience in our office.

Dr. Olivia Ray’s advanced training in implants, surgery and sedation dentistry has been key in serving the wide range of patient needs.

Dr. Ramón Ray’s is new to our office but not new to dentistry. He shares Dr. Mark’s interests in orthodontics and root canal therapy which adds of our Garden Ridge Center for Dentistry doctor team.

Together, Dr. Mark & the Doctors Ray offer expertise and skill to meet the goals of your healthy smile. Our patients are always grateful when able to remain at the Garden Ridge Center for Dentistry for advanced services like these!

Crowns - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

Crowns

A crown fully covers most or all of a tooth. It is needed when a tooth has broken, has visible cracks that may lead to fracture or, when a large filling has failed.

The jaw muscles are some of the strongest in our body causing teeth to endure great stress while chewing and speaking. A crown helps brace weakened teeth and provide a degree of protection. That’s why a crown is recommended after root canal treatment, especially in molar teeth.

While a broken and/or cracked tooth is a complex matter, a crown is a helpful treatment to restore teeth for years to come.

Usually two appointments are needed to restore a tooth with a crown.  But, with state-of-the-art milling technology at the Garden Ridge Center for Dentistry, many times a “same day” crown can be fabricated and delivered in our office in one appointment.

Some cases may still require more than one appointment, and the technology of a licensed dental laboratory but, our skilled doctors will advise what’s possible and best for you!
Dentures - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

Dentures

Dentures replace teeth that have have been lost to tooth decay, gum disease or injury.  No one wants to lose their natural teeth, but partial or full dentures make it possible to chew, speak and smile again.

Removable dentures may replace a few or all teeth. Implants can be placed to  retain and stabilize a denture.

There are several denture options which may meet your needs. If you have questions about how dentures may help you to better speak, chew and smile. call our office at 210.651.5100 for a consult appointment.

 
Implants - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

Implants

A dental implant is an option to replace a missing tooth. In this procedure, a small titanium cylinder is placed into the bone.  The bone is allowed to integrate or grow around the implant for a specific amount of time. Once the implant is stable in the bone and able to handle chewing forces, your dentist will attach a replacement crown on top of the implant.

Implants have become very successful to help replace one or many teeth. Patients really like that implant crowns can be cleaned like their natural teeth and do not have to be removed at night.

There are also smaller implants with special anchors to help stabilize dentures.   The “lower” denture especially benefits from implant stabilization as it tends to move more with chewing and speaking.
Root Canal Treatment - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

Root Canal Treatment

There are a few reason why a patient needs root canal or endodontic therapy.  Often, it is because tooth decay reaches all the way to the nerve of the tooth. Regular cleanings and checkups with x-rays can detect and prevent this process.  Another reason a tooth may need root canal therapy is due to trauma which can break a tooth and damage the nerve. Either way, the nerve or pulp becomes infected and cannot heal on its own. It must be treated to prevent pain and infection.

Symptoms that the nerve has become infected may include sensitivity to hot/cold or sweets, pain, swelling, pain from biting or pressure, and a bad taste in the mouth. Sometimes, a patient will have no symptoms but the infection is found with an X-ray taken on a routine check-up which underscores the importance of regular dental visits.

The infection must be treated or the tooth must be removed. Root canal therapy for an infected nerve helps save the tooth. Usually, a crown is recommended tooth after root canal therapy.
Bridges - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

Bridges

Bridges are one option for filling the space left by a missing tooth.  It is made to look like the missing tooth and attached with crowns at teeth on either side of the gap left. The support by teeth on either side of the gap is why this restoration is called a “bridge”

Before replacing teeth with implant crowns, bridges were widely chosen as they are not removed at night. A bit more attention to flossing and brushing is needed but worth the effort as bridges are not removed at night.

It is important that a missing tooth be replaced as soon as possible for several reasons. If not treated the teeth surrounding the gap begins to shift. The work of teeth is shared with those next to each one, so a missing tooth causes the adjacent teeth to take on more of the stress of chewing and speaking. The added stress may cause problems in bite changes.
TMJ Treatments - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

TMJ Treatments

TMJ refers to the joint in our jaws, specifically the temporal-mandibular joint. Problems in this joint may be caused by a misalignment of the teeth, trauma, or painful muscle tension.

Problems in this area can cause:

  • Headaches
  • Earaches
  • Trouble/soreness in opening and closing the mouth
  • Clicking or popping of the jaw
  • Pain in the jaw muscles
  • Soreness in the area, sometimes extending to the face

While there is not a one-size-fits-all treatment for the condition, options may include but are not limited to replacing missing teeth, moving teeth, adjusting the bite, and filling gaps between teeth. Sometimes a plastic mouthpiece is recommended to reduce both pain and the damaging effects of clenching or grinding.

Please let us know if you are having any of these symptoms when you visit us.
Dental Anxiety - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

Dental Anxiety

We understand that dental anxiety and dentophobia are real, so we offer a variety of sedation options to meet your personal needs and keep you comfortable.

Nitrous Oxide is delivered through a mask and is commonly referred to as a “laughing gas” as it can make patients feel happy, relaxed, and calm during their procedure. This is a great technique for those with mild anxiety, or for children requiring dental work such as fillings.

Oral sedation, or enteral sedation, is a technique that works well for patients with dental anxiety that will require a longer dental appointment. Patients benefit from remaining in a relaxed state for several hours and do not remember much of the procedure after it is complete.

IV sedation, or parenteral sedation, is a conscious sedation technique where anti-anxiety medications are administered through an intravenous line for fast and effective anxiety control that is adjusted specifically to your needs. This helps patients with moderate to severe dental anxiety and is a great technique for surgical procedures.
L-PRF - Garden Ridge Center For Dentistry

L-PRF

While all patients are concerned about pain after tooth removal, our patients are reporting less pain after extractions with a new procedure!

What is it? Leukocyte and platelet-rich fibrin (L-PRF) is a collection of the important cells involved in your body’s natural healing process. During the normal healing process, these cells are recruited but bring along inflammation, swelling, and pain- usually in the first three days after the surgery. By utilizing L-PRF, we are depositing these important cells and growth factors into the site immediately, which helps avoid much of the swelling, inflammation, and pain that would otherwise occur.

How is it made? L-PRF is made from a sample of the patient’s own blood. The blood is drawn on the day of treatment and then spun in our centrifuge so that these rich healing factors can be gathered and placed directly into the extraction socket. L-PRF even aids with the clotting needed for healing which can be helpful for those patients on blood thinners. These platelet concentrates benefit healing so much that they are widely used in a variety of regenerative medicine techniques, including orthopedic surgery, sports medicine, and dermatology.
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