Specialist Dental Group was recently featured in a Kaltim Post article (newspaper based in Kalimantan, Indonesia) about healthcare in Singapore. You can read the full article in Bahasa Indonesia by clicking here.
For the convenience of our blog readers who do not understand Bahasa Indonesia, we have summarized the relevant portion of the article in English below.
ACCURACY: 3D X-rays are used to ensure that the installation of dental implants is accurate at Specialist Dental Group
Apart from visiting the restructured hospitals in Singapore, we also visited several private hospitals in Singapore, such as Raffles Hospital, Thomson Medical Center, Specialist Dental Group in Mount Elizabeth Hospital, and Pacific Healthcare at Paragon Mall. In Singapore, the hospital is not just a place for treatment but also to beautify yourself or as a lifestyle enhancer.
At Specialist Dental Group, there is a method to straighten your teeth by using transparent aligners (Invisalign). According to Dr. Ansgar C Cheng, these aligners are very useful especially for those who may feel shy in wearing braces. Invisalign uses 3-dimensional computer technology to plan a comprehensive treatment, and consisting of a series of specially personalized aligners for the patient. Each aligner is used approximately 2 weeks before being replaced by the next, and gradually straightening your teeth until the final pair of aligners are used.
“You will not know that a person is wearing the aligners, because Invisalign is transparent (clear),” he said.
Invisalign treatment takes about 1-3 years to complete, and may require an average of 10-50 pairs of aligners. Invisalign treatment is suitable to close gaps between teeth, or teeth that are mild to moderately crowded. “The benefits of using Invisalign, are because the aligners are not as obvious as conventional metal braces, and it is very easy to install and remove, which makes it easy to clean the aligners and the teeth,” said Dr. Cheng.
In addition, Specialist Dental Group also provides dental implants in a single day. “Most dental implants take weeks, while it just takes a day here,” he said.
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More people are becoming aware that correcting their smile will have a major impact on their overall appearance. Solutions to imperfect smiles can be found by visiting the dentist…and in some cases, achieved in just one hour !
Teeth Whitening
Teeth whitening brightens discoloured or stained teeth caused by food, coffee or smoking. It is a painless procedure which can be completed in less than one hour. A consultation and examination is first done to ensure that the patient is a good candidate, and to rule out existing gum problems or decayed teeth which may affect the treatment outcome. .
It is also important to keep in mind that daily oral hygiene is an essential part of maintaining teeth whitening results. Depending on one’s lifestyle and dietary habits, the whitening can last for as long as two years.
Veneers
Veneers are thin, custom-made high strength porcelain or composite resin shells designed to fit discreetly over the teeth. It is another option available for discoloured teeth, worn down teeth, broken or chipped teeth, gaps between teeth, and uneven, misaligned or irregularly shaped teeth.
In addition to aesthetic benefits, veneers also have a functional purpose as they protect the surface of a damaged tooth. They may even replace the need for a crown in certain situations, eliminating the need for more invasive tooth preparation.
This is a good alternative treatment to braces, for moderately misaligned teeth that fulfil certain clinical requirements, as it can be completed in shorter period of time – as short as two visits to the dentist.
Composite Bonding
Composite bonding is another option in treating teeth with small chips or gaps or dark stains that do not respond to bleaching. This procedure involves applying a tooth-coloured polymeric resin to the tooth and moulding it into the proper shape. This is a painless procedure and typically takes less than 30 minutes to complete.
Crowns
Crowns are restorations that cover or cap teeth, restoring them to their natural size, shape, and color. Crowns are indicated when there is a need to strengthen teeth that are mechanically weakened (e.g. teeth with large cavities). Our clinic usually uses zirconium crowns.
Zirconium-based dental crowns are superior in structural strength reinforcement and aesthetic quality. Instead of relying on a dental technician alone, well-fitting crowns could be robotically made using CAD-CAM technology with significantly reduced human intervention. Research has shown that the fit of these CAD-CAM crowns are excellent even at a sub-microscopic level.
Dental Implants
Dental implants replace missing teeth with natural-looking teeth that look, feel and function just like your own teeth. Conventional implants take between three to nine months for treatment to be completed as time is needed for the implant to integrate with the jawbone. With Instant Implants™ and Teeth-in-an-Hour implants, the time to complete treatment is much shorter, due to the skill of the dentist and the technology used.
Braces / Invisalign
Braces function to straighten crooked teeth or close the gap between teeth. Aesthetic braces such as ceramic (tooth coloured) braces and invisible braces (lingual braces) are gaining popularity. Invisalign, a series of removable clear aligners are also a discreet, aesthetic and comfortable way of perfecting your smile….almost without anyone knowing.
Walk Out with that Beautiful Smile
While there are many options available for smile makeovers, your teeth are there to reflect your inner well-being. The most important consideration for a lasting and healthy smile is to have regular check-ups, brush/floss well, and maintain a balanced diet and lifestyle. This is the real secret to looking great, at any age!
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As we begin the new year, one of activities that we would like to incorporate more for our clinic and dental team/staff is to engage in more projects that make a difference in the local and global community.
We kicked off our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities participating in World Vision’s Life Changing Gifts. Our clinic made a corporate donation of 1,000 dental care kits for Cambodian children while our staff individually made the following life changing gifts:
construction of a well for a community in Cambodia;
healthcare for one pregnant woman in Myanmar;
shelter for one street child for a year in Vietnam;
an animal farm (catfishes, chickens and ducks) for a family in Thailand;
15 fruit trees (bananas, papayas, oranges and mangoes) for 3 families in Lesotho;
one month’s supply of food for a hungry child in China;
back to school packs for three children in Bangladesh;
stationery set for one child in the Philippines;
sponsorship of one child in Cambodia.
If you are interested in providing a life-changing gift, click here.
The Specialist Dental Group dental team and staff collected four cartons of toys and bears for the Spastic Children’s Association of Singapore as part of the Canadian Association of Singapore’s Annual Teddy Bear Drive. The clinic also made a corporate donation of SGD$3,000 and our staff made individual donations amounting to almost $1,000.
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