Achieve a Smile Makeover in the San Francisco Area with Restorative Dentistry

Patients with dental problems can beautify their smile with a Pope Dental smile makeover from our San Francisco Bay Area practice. Restorative dentistry can improve speaking and chewing ability while simultaneously improving appearance and self-confidence. Lost, damaged, or severely decayed teeth often need to be replaced. Dr. Pope has received advanced training in general restorative procedures, as well as full-mouth reconstruction. Below are some of the restorative options we offer:

• Root Canal Therapy
• Dentures with Precision Attachments
• Comprehensive Reconstruction Dentistry
• TMJ Treatment
• Sports Dentistry

Root Canal Therapy

Pope Dental performs expert root canal therapy. Each tooth houses a strand of dental pulp, which supplies nutrients to the tooth’s root and contains nerves. However, if the pulp is damaged (by infection or injury), it dies, ultimately killing the tooth as well. To save such a tooth, root canal therapy is typically performed. During this procedure, a hole is drilled into the tooth’s crown, and the infected pulp is reshaped or scooped out and discarded. Next, a crown is placed over the root and the tooth is permanently sealed.

Dentures with Precision Attachments

Fixed dentures are a great option for people who have lost some of their teeth and wish to restore their smile’s natural beauty. When properly designed by Dr. Pope to fit the wearer’s mouth, these natural-looking dentures make chewing more comfortable, allow for proper alignment of the mouth and surrounding facial features, and improve speaking ability. Made of durable resin or plastic, fixed dentures from Pope Dental attach to surrounding natural teeth with discreet, tooth-colored clasps (called precision attachments).

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Comprehensive Reconstruction Dentistry

Some people require more than basic restorative work. Fortunately, comprehensive reconstructive dentistry to restore your smile doesn’t have to be an overwhelming experience when it is in the care of experts. Pope Dental works with a team of exceptional specialists to cover every aspect of your dental health. Dr. Pope has years of advanced training in full-mouth restorative care and is capable of treating even the most complex cases. In addition, his professional relationships with some of the best plastic surgeons in the area allow him to create a comprehensive treatment plan that focuses on all of a patient’s aesthetic concerns. So, if you are in need of a comprehensive smile makeover, and you live in the San Francisco-area, Pope Dental can help.

TMJ Treatment

Do you suffer from migraines, tension headaches, painful aching jaw, sensitive teeth, or neck or back soreness?

These symptoms can all be related to the clenching or grinding of your teeth. Most people are unaware that they may be clenching their teeth, as this most often occurs during sleep as their jaw muscles involuntarily tighten. The high-intensity contractions of these powerful muscles become painful, and the forces generated cause pain to the teeth, surrounding tissues, joints, and other muscles. This can also lead to debilitating migraine and tension headaches. There are many different types of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders such as these, and we offer several options for sufferers of TMJ disorders.

Along with traditional therapies for TMJ problems that include splint appliances, occlusion analysis, and medications, Dr. Pope is also trained in the revolutionary NTI tension suppression system.

“We have on a constant basis, patients referred to us from their physicians and chiropractors for treatment of migraines, neck and jaw soreness,” he says. “With the NTI appliance, we can eliminate the need for medications because we begin to solve the real problem of high-intensity clenching. Relief can be expected within a few hours to a few weeks.”

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Sports Dentistry

Sports dentistry is the treatment and prevention of oral/facial athletic injuries and related oral diseases and manifestations. Dr. Scott Pope is presently the head team dentist for all of Saint Mary’s college athletics. As a sports dentist, Dr. Pope highly recommends the use of custom made mouthguards, especially those of the laboratory lamination type for the very best in oral/facial protection as well as concussion deterrence. As our focus is in injury prevention, we do not recommend store bought boil and bite mouthguards to our patients and athletic teams.

It is estimated by the American Dental Association that mouthguards prevent approximately 200,000 injuries each year in high school and collegiate football alone.

The National Youth Sports Foundation for the Prevention of Athletic Injuries, Inc. reports several interesting statistics. Dental injuries are the most common type of orofacial injury sustained during participation in sports. Victims of total tooth avulsions who do not have teeth properly preserved or replanted may face lifetime dental costs of $10,000 to $15,000 per tooth, hours in the dentist's chair, and the possible development of other dental problems such as periodontal disease.

If you are in need of a smile makeover and you live in the San Francisco area, contact Pope Dental today!