Putting Patients At Ease

Here at Dr. Talbot’s office we like to do everything we can to make our patients and their parents comfortable. We talk to parents at every visit, explain what we did today and we will be doing at the next visit. We send progress letters to both the general dentist and the parents every 6 months. This keeps parents informed even if they can’t come in for the appointments. We have a lot of patients who ride share with friends or grandparents and other family members who bring them in for appointments.

To make the “waiting” a little more pleasurable for those who bring our patients to their appointments we have installed a coffee bar and offer wireless internet access. We also serve snacks and drinks after school because we know patients often come straight from school and they are hungry!

We have recently changed our “incentive program” a little bit. We give patients tickets at each appointment to a drawing. Patients can earn tickets for arriving to their appointment on time, getting an A on their brushing, nothing loose or broken, wearing appliances as instructed, wearing their Dr. Talbot t-shirt, and/or answering the trivia question. We draw on of these tickets out monthly for a pair of movie passes and then another one out at the end of each quarter for an iPod Nano. Patients LOVE this program!

Age 7 is the magic number for an orthodontic check-up

Many parents assume they must wait until their child has all of his or her permanent teeth to see Dr. Talbot for a consultation, only to discover treatment would have been much easier if started earlier. Did you know the American Association of Orthodontists recommends that every child have an orthodontic check-up no later than age seven?

That’s right—seven.

Ok, so what’s so great about age seven, you ask? Enough permanent teeth have arrived for Dr. Talbot to make a determination about whether any problems are present. The first molars have come in, providing an opportunity to check for malocclusion, or “bad bite.” Also, the incisors have begun to come in, and problems such as crowding, deep bites and open bites can be detected.

Orthodontic evaluation at an early age provides one of two positive outcomes: For some, early identification or problems will lead to easier or shorter orthodontic treatment in the future. For others, a healthy prognosis will provide immediate peace of mind.

Early evaluation, of course, may signal a need for early treatment. For some children, early treatment can prevent physical and emotional trauma. Aside from spurring on years of harmful teasing, misaligned teeth are also prone to injury and are detrimental to good oral hygiene. So, if your child is nearing his or her seventh birthday, give us a call to schedule an appointment.

Going Green in Citrus Heights and Roseville, CA with Dr. Talbot!

At the orthodontic offices of Dr. Richard D. Talbot, we care about making the world a better, happier place, and we know that you do too. So we’d like to take this opportunity to let you know what our office is doing to help preserve our planet and its resources.

We are a mostly paperless office. We switched to electronic charting about 4 years ago and have been moving the direction of using less and less paper ever since. We have been using digital x-rays for about 6 years now and anytime we share x-rays or any treatment information we transmit that information electronically using a secure site rather than printing and mailing. We have recently sent out a survey to you, our patients, asking if you prefer to receive correspondence from us electronically, by mail or both. We are finding that more and more people are communicating via the computer, whether it is via our web site, email, or even these social networks! This makes communication faster and greener, because we aren't using paper!

We have also recently installed a recycle bin for all our cardboard boxes, plastic containers, etc. Finally, we re-use paper and print on the back side whenever possible. What efforts have you taken in your own life to be greener and more sustainable? We'd love to hear about them!

Invisalign® Tips, from Dr. Talbot

Many people know that Invisalign is a great solution to braces if you don't want to experience the look and feel of traditional metal braces. What few people know, though, is that just like traditional braces, Invisalign requires proper care to work effectively. Good oral hygiene is highly important, even when you are wearing something in your mouth that you can take out to eat with. It's still likely that your aligners can build up plaque if not treated properly. When wearing your Invisalign aligners, Dr. Talbot wants you to ask yourself the following questions:

1. Am I eating with my aligners on? - These aligners are removable and should be taken out when you eat.
2. Am I drinking anything other than water with my aligners on? - Though it's not a necessity for you to take out your aligners while you drink, think about how sticky a soda is. If you take out your aligners when drinking a soda, you have a better chance of keeping your aligners clean.
3. Am I brushing before putting the trays on? - The aligners have both an inside and outside. Keeping the outside clean is easy. Keeping the inside clean is also easy: just make sure you've brushed your teeth before putting the trays on.

These are all very simple steps, and ultimately, they help to keep you building good oral habits. If you have any questions about Invisalign or your treatment with Dr. Talbot, give us a call!