Our team has expanded

Last Fall we added Dr. Michael Oakes to our team. We are happy to say that not only has he impressed us all with his abilities but our patients have truly enjoyed meeting him. You may notice at your next dental appointment that we have also made a few changes to our office. We have updated the front desk area and added a laptop to help patients check in quickly when they arrive. Now that our practice has two doctors, we were also able to expand our hours. We offer appointments as early as seven and as late as five thirty Monday through Friday. Needless to say we are very excited about the new improvements!

Happy New Year!

December is always a busy month for our office, but it reminds us how lucky we are to have such wonderful patients. Our last post focused on gum disease and a more comfortable method of surgery. In the last month alone, Dr. H has performed this procedure (LANAP) 10 times! Even in a tough economy and possibly severe flood damage, if you live in our neighborhood, people are addressing their health issues.
The week after Christmas our office was closed so that our team could be with their families during the holidays. After a nice break, we entered 2011 excited about denistry! Every new year marks an opportunity to improve and grow. Not only will our team be furthering their education, but new technology will be introduced to the office. Dentistry continues to change and we beleive in using the most efficient and comfortable methods.
Happy New Year from our team at Huffines Dental Excellence!

What is LANAP?

LANAP, also known as Laser Assisted New Attachment Procedure, is the newest and most comfortable way to treat severe periodontal disease. With around 50% of Americans being diagnosed as having periodontal disease this continues to be an extremely important health issue.
The average person will accumulate a a white soft material on their teeth called plaque. When this plaque is not cleaned off (by brushing) it will harden and become tarter. The tarter then harbors bacteria below the gums causing an infection and usually associated bone loss.
If you have ever been told that you need to have periodontal gum surgery you used to only have one option. The traditional cut and sew. Instead of cutting healthy tissue from other areas of the mouth, LANAP allows us to kill the bacteria and promote healthy tissue growth. The patient is in far less pain, experiences less bleeding and recovers practically over night.
Our office is dedicated to diagnosing and properly treating periodontal disease.

Oh how busy we get!

I can't believe it's been as long as it has since our last blog! Needless to say we have been staying busy at Huffines Dental Excellence.

Our team was fortunate enough to attend an amazing seminar last week. The Madow Brothers made a visit to Nashville, thanks to Oral Surgery Associates . We all left the seminar ready to build and grow as a team, but most importantly to better serve our patients. WE LOVE DENTISTRY!

With all the work comes a little play. Dr. Huffines was able to squeeze in a vacation in September to Scotland! Yes, he did quite a bit of golfing. Thankfully he took a few pictures. We posted these on our Facebook page, feel free to check them out.

And lets not forget Dr. Huffines is giving away a brand new 32' LCD FLAT SCREEN TV! All you have to do is refer your friends and family. It's simple. The more people you refer the better your odds are to win.

Give Melissa or Sunny a call at our front desk to schedule your appointment! We look forward to seeing you.

Ivoclar Oven

Our office recently added a new Ivoclar oven to our lab. This oven will be used to to add esthetic value to your CEREC crowns. Dr. Huffines would like to get to the point that the only crowns put in your mouth are the ones made here in our office. We are still learning how to get the absolute best quality out of this amazing technology, but we are more excited than ever! Along with all the information we received in Arizona, we are thrilled to have a training course next week to get us started.

The Scottsdale Center for Dentistry

Dr. Huffines along with two of his assistants spent the weekend in Pheonix, AZ at the Scottsdale Center for Dentistry. The course focused on CEREC training. CEREC is an in office unit that uses digital images to mill an all porcelain crown in our office. This prevents the patient from making an additional trip to our office! We learned about new materials and techniques that will make us more proficient and successful. In the near future we plan on making this technique protocol for all patients needing a crown. Need more information? Call us at the office or click on the link to the Scottsdale Center.

DIAGNOdent

Using the newest technology, we are now able to detect smaller cavities before they become a larger problem. The DIAGNOdent is a harmless laser beam that scans the surface of your tooth giving your dental professional a digital read out showing how much decay is present. Traditional xrays show decay in between the teeth. The pits and fissures on the biting surface of your tooth are some of the hardest areas to detect decay. By detecting decay this early, you are not only saving your natural tooth structure but also your bank account. At Huffines Dental excellence we offer this quick and easy procedure to ALL patients...at no additional cost to you. If you have any questions please feel free to contact our office. We'll be happy to help.