You water the garden three times a week, you change your car’s oil every three months, and you replace the batteries in your smoke detectors once a year. Your teeth need to see your dentist on a regular schedule, too.

While daily oral hygiene habits are essential to good oral health, professional dental cleanings at our office ensure your teeth are treated to a deeper level of cleaning. We recommend for most of our patients to have a checkup at least every six months. In addition to a thorough cleaning and polishing of your teeth, these regular visits help us detect and prevent the onset of tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease. During your visit, we’ll check the health of your mouth, teeth, gums, cheeks, and tongue. We’ll also check old fillings and restorations, as these can wear away over time from constant chewing, grinding, or clenching.

If you are predisposed to oral diseases, you may need to visit our office more often than every six months. Factors at play in these diseases include age, pregnancy, tobacco use, medical conditions (such as diabetes, dry mouth, or HIV infection), along with how well you take care of your teeth on a daily basis.

Make sure your teeth get the professional attention they deserve – If you’re overdue for your next cleaning, check with our office to schedule an appointment!

Today, we thought we’d ask: What’s on YOUR reading list? What are some of your all-time favorites? Out of ideas for great reads? Ask us for suggestions, and our team would be happy to provide a few. You may also ask a local librarian for some ideas on what to read next!

Happy reading! Be sure to share with us your book picks or your all-time favorite novels or literature on our Facebook page!

We know one of the great ways to improve your confidence is to improve your smile. And that begins with a visit to our office in Chicago’s Loop. Has your child visited Dr. Gilleran and Dr. Van Fossen’s office in the past six months for his or her regular check-up? We invite you to give us a call to book your appointment!

See you soon!

Straight teeth, Drs. Gilleran & Van Fossen will tell you, are less prone to decay, because they collect less plaque—the sticky colorless substance that forms on our teeth and leads to tooth decay; and they are easier to keep clean!

If you’re wondering whether your teeth might cause problems because they are out of alignment, give us a call to set up a consultation for Invisalign. The team at Gilleran and Van Fossen can help you decide whether or not you will benefit from Invisalign treatment at our modern office conveniently located in Chicago’s Loop.

Happy Friday!

If the toothache persists, it is important to give us a call to determine the cause of the pain and provide relief. Immediate contact should be pursued if your child experiences:

· Pain that is not be relieved by over-the-counter drugs
· Severe pain after a tooth is pulled which may be dry socket syndrome
· Pain associated with swelling of the gums or face, or discharge around a tooth, especially if accompanied by a fever
· Broken or knocked-out teeth from an accident or injury

We hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions below or by giving us a call!

As you probably know, you can always connect with us on our Facebook page, but we invite you to please contact our office with any updates to phone numbers and addresses, so that we may be able to reach you.

Thank you! Have a great week!

As your dentists, Drs. Gilleran and Van Fossen are specialists who work to diagnose, treat, and prevent oral health problems. Please let us now if you have any questions about your oral health during your next appointment at our convenient office located in Chicago’s Loop. Take care of your teeth, and smile bright!

Fluoride can be found in any toothpaste with the ADA Seal of Approval, as well as in drinking water across the United States. To ensure you’re getting the appropriate amount of fluoride, having a professionally applied fluoride treatment during your next checkup is possible if you are concerned you are not getting adequate amounts at home.

Of course, using toothpaste with the ADA Seal of Approval is a good source of fluoride, but optimal levels of absorption can only be achieved if you use it as directed: brushing twice a day for two to three minutes each time.

At our office, you can receive professionally applied topical fluoride during your next dental checkup. This is extremely important for people who are at high risk for tooth decay, including children, people with less than perfect oral hygiene, people undergoing orthodontic treatment, and people with weakened enamel due to lifestyle choices or genetic factors. If you have any questions regarding fluoride, please feel free to ask Dr. Gilleran or Van Fossen or your hygienist. We want you to have the healthiest smile possible.

In office whitening is a great way to improve the look of your smile and may include the use of a whitening lamp or laser to enhance the effectiveness of the whitening gel by accelerating the whitening agent. Products such as our Zoom!®are safe, effective, and pain-free options to whiten your smile, usually in just one office visit.

If whitening your smile at home sounds like a better option for you, we also provide products like Opalescence®, a professional strength whitening gel only available at dental offices. This system also includes custom whitening trays that fit comfortably in your mouth and different strengths of whitening gels to give you specific whitening results.

Of course, there are many over the counter whitening options, from toothpaste to strips, which advertize professional strength results. Talk to us to see if these whitening products can give you the results you want.