Dental Services

At Bangalow Holistic Dentist

we achieve all the goals of modern dentistry whilst utilising a more biocompatible approach. Below, you’ll find a list of services we offer – all in keeping with Our Philosophy. If you don’t see what you want, give us a call and we’ll let you know how we can help.

Tooth extractions

Ensuring a healthy and living jaw bone and faster, less painful healing.

For every extraction we perform, we thoroughly curette the extraction socket to remove any diseased tissue and the periodontal ligament from the bone. We also irrigate with saline solution, hydrogen peroxide, and Traumeel ampule solution (a very effective combination of mineral and biological extracts). This reduces any microorganisms and promotes faster, less painful healing.

If you’ve had a tooth removed in the past and the dentist hasn’t curetted, there’s a possibility you’ll have an area of diseased bone, called a cavitation. We can only offer cavitation surgery for certain areas of the jaw bone and always require a Cone Beam 3-D CT. If the areas are located in a more difficult area, such as in the wisdom tooth area, we’ll arrange a referral to an Oral Surgeon.

Less stressful extractions

If we deem the forces are becoming too great on the jaw bone when extracting your tooth, we will recommend that the tooth be sectioned – cut into two or three pieces (painless with anaesthetic), which allows each individual root to be removed separately, one at a time, and without trauma. This tends to be much less stressful for the patient as the separate roots come out easily.

Dental phobia

Do you have anxiety or fear of visiting the dentist?

Dr Cluer is very tuned in to notice any signs of discomfort or apprehension. He’s always warm, caring and patient. He will listen to your concerns, patiently explain the procedures, and ensure you feel in control of your treatment choices.

He uses an effective injecting technique (except for mandibular blocks) to alleviate most of the pain associated with needles. A tiny amount of anaesthetic is injected into your gum, and when it’s numb the rest is injected painlessly. Sounds simple and obvious but not many dentists do this.

We have a large screen installed on the ceiling above the dental chair for you to watch Netflix. This has proven to be incredibly helpful to our anxious patients.

If you’re feeling anxious when you arrive at the clinic, ask our receptionist for a natural remedy to help calm you down and give you courage. At all times, you’ll be supported and treated with kindness.

Crowns, bridges and implants

Have your bite or smile restored with a clinical perfectionist.

Whether you have a missing tooth, worn teeth, or need a full mouth reconstruction, Dr Cluer achieves durable, natural-looking restorations, every time.

30 years of experience
Advanced training
Easy to communicate with, patient
Mock-ups for cosmetic cases at initial consultation
Digital scanner for fast, accurate impressions
Digital Nikon camera for perfect colour
Metal-free where possible
Try-in of restoration for approval before cementing
5–10 years guarantee on structural components

Call Bangalow Holistic Dentist for a consultation so we can assess your situation and discuss your options, including biocompatibility of materials.

To help you to understand your options and to walk you through what to expect when receiving crowns, bridges or implants, click here.

Cosmetic dentistry

Biocompatible, state of the art cosmetic solutions for damaged, discoloured, broken, chipped, cracked, missing or crooked teeth.

If you simply want to improve the appearance of your front teeth, you can have natural looking veneers, and/or bleaching.
If your teeth are badly worn or damaged, you might need crowns which will also strengthen your teeth.
Or you might require a combination of crowns, veneers and bleaching, depending on each tooth’s requirements.

Prior to making any irreversible changes to your teeth you can have mock-ups to ensure your expectations can be met, and also to show you what is possible. For example, sometimes people think they’ll need braces to correct a crooked tooth but are pleasantly surprised to see the problem can be resolved with veneers.

To create veneers or crowns that you love, requires refined skill, advanced training, artistry, communication, patience and experience. But above all, superb cosmetic results are achieved by meticulous planning.

There are many options available to improve the appearance of your teeth and smile, so come in and talk to Dr Cluer. He’ll provide you with the best biocompatible and aesthetic cosmetic dentistry solutions for your individual situation.

Veneers

If you’ve wondered how actors and models have such perfect and white natural teeth, the answer is simple – veneers!

A veneer, as the name suggests, is a thin layer of porcelain or composite resin, that is placed over the surface of the tooth. Well-designed veneers mimic the look and feel of natural teeth and are almost indistinguishable, especially when we use pure porcelain, called refractory veneers.

Prior to even touching your teeth, we can construct a BFEP (Bonded Functional Aesthetic Prototype) which was formally called a mock-up. This is a method used for pre-treatment planning.

We construct temporary veneers or crowns over your natural teeth so you can see how you’ll look. This establishes a perfect guide for the shape and overall look of your final restorations.

If it’s a big cosmetic case, you can usually go home with the temporary mock-up for a few days. This gives you time to have a good think about whether you’d like to go ahead, or whether you’d like the dentist to make some minor modifications.

Teeth whitening

We recommend and offer at-home teeth whitening. A gel with either 9% hydrogen peroxide or 18% carbamide peroxide is placed in custom-made trays that fit over your teeth. This takes up to two weeks of 15-45 min treatments per day, depending on the type of bleaching material.

The Australian Dental Association states that peroxide-containing bleaching products are safe and effective when used as directed. The most common side effects are transient tooth sensitivity and gum irritation either during or after treatment.

We don’t recommend teeth whitening for some people, so you’ll need to come in for a consultation for us to assess you. If you’re a suitable candidate, it’ll take 15 minutes to take impressions of your teeth in order to make the trays.

At home teeth whitening (bleaching)

Whiter and brighter smile
Cost effective
Safe
Much less sensitivity than in-clinic bleaching

Professional at-home teeth whitening, by bleaching the teeth with hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide, eliminates discolouration of the teeth and makes them whiter.

We offer take-home teeth whitening kits because they get the best results with the least sensitivity and are by far the most cost effective.

In some aesthetic cases, we will recommend bleaching prior to constructing veneers or crowns.

Bangalow is an easy drive from our neighbouring townships of Byron Bay, Lismore, Ballina, and the Northern Rivers. For all appointments, phone us or use our Online Appointment Portal.

Biological Gum Treatments

Gum disease can be more serious than most people realise, as when it gets to the stage of periodontitis, it’s not only possible to lose teeth but even more concerning is its link to other diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, stroke and diabetes.

Non-surgical, biocompatible gum treatments aim to eliminate the infection and promote healing, without removing tooth structure with harsh root planing.

If you have one or more of the following symptoms, you may have gum disease:

Bleeding after brushing or at any other time
Red, swollen, irritated, sensitive or painful gums
Shrinking, receding gums
Bad breath, bad taste
Moving or loose tooth or teeth

Dental ozone

Ozonated water is continually flowing through drills and scaler to kill infective microorganisms (pathogens) in the mouth – bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites.
Ozonated water means less antibiotics, as post-surgical irrigation of tooth extraction wounds and cavitation wounds minimises the risk of infection.
Ozonated water promotes healing.
Ozonated water helps to eliminate gum disease – kills pathogens that cause the infection and supports healing.
Ozonated water is effective against drug resistant bacteria. Microorganisms cannot build resistance to ozone.
Ozonated water replaces chemical cleaning products – a natural, non-toxic disinfectant for surfaces and waterlines which feed drills and scaler.

Children’s dentistry

Tooth decay is the most common chronic illness in children and can affect their general health. Our dental therapist will nurture a trusting relationship with your child, reinforce preventative measures such as effective brushing, and provide treatment if necessary.

To develop a positive attitude, we recommend your child’s first dental visit at about 2 years old, followed by a check-up every 6 months right through to adulthood. These early visits will shape your child’s view of dentistry, helping to make them dentally aware and responsible with their teeth and gums.

Our aim is prevention, giving your child the skills and impetus to maintain excellent oral health for life. We offer bulk billing under the Medicare Child Dental Benefits Scheme for children under 18 years, or a free exam if your child does not qualify for Medicare.

Denture Solutions (full dentures and partial dentures)

If you have a missing tooth or teeth, or teeth that cannot be saved, partial or full dentures are a healthy option and much more cost-effective than bridges and implants.

We recommend and provide biocompatible, flexible, metal free, partial dentures. These are all individually designed to give you the most comfortable and aesthetically pleasing result, including tooth-coloured clasps and other refined design aspects.

Sensitive teeth

Are you experiencing pain when chewing or biting? The triggers are usually hot, cold, sweet and sour foods and drinks, or pressure upon biting. Some people even feel pain from breathing in air. The causes of sensitive teeth include:

Brushing too hard or incorrectly
Gum disease
Grinding or clenching
Erosion of enamel
Tooth decay
Recent dental work
Micro-fractures

Once your dentist or oral health therapist has made a diagnosis, treatment options will be discussed. Treatment can be as simple as maintaining good oral hygiene, using a softer brush or applying a re-mineralising mousse.

If pain occurs upon release of the pressure from biting down, you might have micro-fractures. Porcelain overlays are a good option to protect cracked teeth.

Don’t delay your check-up or routine scale and clean, as things can get worse if not constantly monitored and addressed.

Bad Breath (halitosis) treatments

Persistent bad breath can cause social problems that lead to low self-confidence and even relationship issues. More than this, it can be the symptom of a more serious problem such as advanced gum disease (periodontitis). Periodontitis is a potential risk to your health due to its link with cardiovascular disease, stroke and some other systemic health issues.

If you are otherwise healthy and don’t suspect your bad breath is caused by external factors such as diet or medication, you should talk to the dentist about it. It’s very common so please don’t feel embarrassed. We’d love to help you.

Emergency dentistry

We endeavour to provide a same-day emergency service for urgent dental matters such as severe pain, accidents, lost teeth, lost fillings, broken bridges, and acute periodontal abscesses. If the problem occurs outside of clinic hours, please call us as soon as we re-open, and we’ll fit you in as soon as possible.

Preventative dentistry

The best way to avoid major dental problems and associated costs, is to visit your dentist or oral health therapist at least once every six months. We’ll monitor the state of your teeth and gums, continue with oral hygiene instruction, and give your teeth a professional clean. This allows you to get on top of any problems before they do your teeth, gums, health, and your wallet, further damage.

Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) problems and bruxism (clinching, grinding)

The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) joins the jaw to the skull and is situated just in front of your ear. It is the most used joint in your whole body.

The most common symptom of a TMJ problem is pain. Symptoms can also include chronic headaches, neck-ache, facial pain and clicking of the joint.

Bruxism is the most frequent factor found in TMJ problems and refers to non-functional grinding and clenching of the teeth. These forces which wear your teeth away or damage your joint, must be managed by your dentist. You can have a night guard or splint made, or have your teeth built up with crowns.

Advanced Technologies used in our Services

Air Abrasion is an ultra-fine, precise, micro “sand blaster” (compressed air plus aluminium oxide) that is used for a variety of dental procedures, for e.g. cleaning grooves of teeth prior to fissure sealants and to enhance bonding techniques.
Ozone water, which we make with a special machine, is used for infection control and for biocompatible gum disease treatments.
IQ Air mercury vapour extraction machine for safer amalgam filling removals.
Digital x-ray machine which means you receive up to 80% less radiation than with film x-rays.
Digital SLR Nikon camera with wireless flash for accurate shade taking when working on crowns, bridges, veneers and implants, which means you won’t have to visit the laboratory for shade matching.

Digital scanner for creating an impression of your mouth rather than using uncomfortable, messy trays with paste. Impressions are required for crowns, bridges, implants, bleaching trays, study models, mouthguards. Digital scanning is faster and more accurate for a better fit.
Mercury separator to trap mercury, preventing it from entering the environment. We are compliant with regulations addressing the proper disposal of mercury.

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