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Family Dentistry – Serving Schenectady, Albany, Saratoga, and Clifton Park

Dr. Peter D. Gold offers a wide variety of preventive and traditional oral health procedures and products at his practice serving the Schenectady, Albany, and Saratoga areas, including:

Seeking to do more than just fill cavities, Dr. Gold and his staff are focused on comprehensive family dentistry and provide every new patient with a complete oral health evaluation, including a thorough assessment of the oral cavity and face as well as a screening for oral cancer. Once the findings are in, Dr. Gold or a member of his highly trained staff will discuss the results with the patient, thus ensuring that the patient is armed with the knowledge to maintain his or her oral health even after he or she goes home. In addition, the practice makes use of the CAESY Patient Education system, a series of videos playing in our comfortable reception area that help explain complicated procedures and terms to the patients. For more information about the procedures offered, contact Dr. Gold.

Family Dentistry and General Care

In addition to restorative and cosmetic care, Dr. Peter D. Gold focuses on family dentistry, meeting the dental needs of patients of all ages, from children to senior citizens. With an emphasis on good oral health, he offers all patients a full examination of their teeth and gums, including the use of x-rays and screening for oral cancer.

With his younger patients, Dr. Gold stresses good oral hygiene and developing good habits-habits that will last all of their lives-to avoid cavities and other oral problems in the years to come. In teens and adults, he addresses orthodontic problems that are easily corrected with metal braces or Invisalign®. Adult patients are candidates for standard treatments as well as cosmetic treatments, from porcelain veneers to teeth whitening. For his senior citizen patients, Dr. Gold focuses on their periodontal care as well as primary concerns including advanced wear, dry mouth, the effects of medications on dental health, dentures and dental crowns. Good oral hygiene, diet and prevention are stressed for patients of all ages.

Invisalign®

For patients dissatisfied with a crooked smile, Dr. Gold often advocates the use of  Invisalign® at our practice serving Albany, Saratoga, Schenectady, and surrounding areas. With Invisalign®, you can correct the alignment of your teeth without anyone knowing.  Invisalign® is a series of clear plastic aligner trays that are worn 24 hours a day for 18 to 20 months-roughly the same amount of time necessary for treatment with metal braces.

Invisalign uses a computer imaging system to construct the series of clear aligner trays made specifically for bringing your teeth into proper alignment. The aligner trays are refitted and changed every two weeks to gradually straighten teeth. Similar to metal braces, the aligners use mild pressure to guide the teeth into a new position. However, unlike metal braces, the Invisalign® retainers can be removed for eating and drinking, as well as brushing and flossing.

Periodontal Care

Periodontal disease affects the gum tissue that supports teeth. Influenced by a variety of factors, including smoking, genetics, medication, and poor nutrition, the infection is caused by bacteria that breaks down the supportive tissue of the gums, eventually leading to tooth loss. At that point, tooth replacement options are available including dentures and dental bridges.

Gingivitis, the earliest form of the disease, is reversible using non-surgical treatments. While a special mouthwash is often prescribed to kill the bacteria, scaling and root planing are non-invasive procedures most commonly used to remove the plaque that causes inflammation in the gums leading to infection.

Periodontitis is the advanced stage of the infection that requires more extensive and invasive treatment including gum surgery. Surgery focuses on the parts of the tissue most affected by the bacteria, including the pockets on either side of the tooth as well as the gum. Surgical options include pocket reduction, regeneration, crown lengthening, and the grafting of soft tissue. Dr. Gold will be able to determine the course of treatment right for you.

Single-visit Root Canal Therapy

No dental procedure evokes as much anxiety in people as the root canal. When performed by an experienced dentist such as Dr. Gold, however, root canal therapy is actually a relatively pain-free procedure that will allow you to preserve as much of your natural tooth structure as possible.

Root canal therapy becomes necessary when the pulp of the tooth becomes so badly decayed that it, along with the nerves and blood supply of the tooth, must be removed to prevent further damage and to ease pressure and pain. If the tooth is left untreated, it risks becoming infected, leading to the loss of the tooth altogether. If the tooth is lost, there are cosmetic treatments, such as dental implants and bridges that can be used to maintain the shape and function of the bite.

The procedure has several parts. First, Dr. Gold will take an x-ray of the tooth to assess the extent of the damage. Next, he will remove the decayed parts of the tooth, clean what remains, and place a dental crown on top to protect it from future damage.

Silent Nite®

Snoring is a problem that affects millions and not only causes fatigue, but can also lead to more serious health problems. Snoring is a condition that occurs when the muscles of the mouth and throat relax so much that they create a smaller air passage through which to breathe. Air is forced through this constricted area, causing vibrations through the soft palate which gives the breath the noisy characteristic we know as snoring.

Silent Nite® is a custom-fit plastic device that helps prevent snoring by moving the lower jaw into a forward position, freeing up the space in the back of the mouth and throat. Since this space remains open, even after you fall into the relaxed state of sleep, your breath can circulate freely without causing vibrations in the soft palate, and your snoring will be a thing of the past.

Dentures

Dentures are prosthetic plastic or porcelain teeth that are attached to a plastic and metal structure. Though typically associated with senior citizens, patients of any age who have lost all or some of their teeth can benefit from dentures, as they maintain the shape of the mouth, keep the jaw from falling into disuse, and allow the patient to chew and speak normally.

Depending on their tooth loss, patients can choose between full and partial dentures at Dr. Gold's Schenectady practice. Conventional dentures are specially crafted to ensure a comfortable and perfect fit; however, if the removal of teeth is required, conventional dentures cannot be fitted and placed until after the mouth has healed. Immediate dentures are available as soon as the remaining teeth have been removed, though you may need to be fitted again once you have healed. For those who prefer the look of porcelain teeth, cosmetic dentures may be right for you. Porcelain mimics the characteristics of natural teeth, giving you a smile so natural that no one will be able to tell you're wearing dentures.

Oral Cancer Screening with VELscope®

Your total oral health is Dr. Gold's priority. We automatically screen all new patients for oral cancer using conventional oral screening methods such as looking for lesions inside the mouth or checking for suspicious bumps on your neck. We also use VELscope®, which is a safe, non-invasive device that uses blue light to illuminate the healthy tissue in your mouth, a view that Dr. Gold would not have without this technology. In a matter of minutes, Dr. Gold can determine whether you have abnormal tissue that is, or could eventually become, cancerous.

Oral cancer is a disease that does not discriminate. Though there are contributing factors associated with it such as tobacco use and alcohol, oral cancer can affect anyone. Like most cancers, it is treatable when caught early. However, many cases of oral cancer are not caught until much later because early symptoms are hidden in tissue beneath the surface or are similar to symptoms associated with other conditions. VELscope® bridges this gap and allows Dr. Gold and his staff to detect potentially cancerous cells in the earliest stages. Early detection helps increase the five-year survival rate of oral cancer to 80 percent.

Dr. Gold provides cosmetic and family dentistry to residents of Schenectady, Albany, Saratoga, and surrounding communities. From dentures and Invisalign® to root canal therapy, Dr. Gold offers a comprehensive range of treatments to serve patients of all ages. To schedule an appointment, contact Dr. Gold today.