Enter to win our next contest!! Create a masterpiece with crayons, markers, beads, yarn, tooth picks or other art supplies!! Let’s see your creativity. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Take a picture of your art, post it on our Facebook page or tag us on Instagram @heightspedoortho!
These amazing ladies are the JOY in our front office and also behind the scenes. We are so thankful for you and everything that you do!!
Governor Abbott’s new executive order states that non-emergent dental care must be postponed until after May 8th. If you have an appointment before then, your appointment is cancelled. We will call to reschedule those appointments when we get closer to that date.
We are still here for you for dental or orthodontic emergencies. Please call the office at 713-861-4000 if you need us or have any questions.
We miss you all so much! It seems like an eternity since we have seen you. In the meantime, we will continue to prepare the office for a clean, safe and fun post-COVID19 🦠 return!
Happy Birthday to one of our favorite doctors! Dr. Theriot has made it into her 30s and we want to wish her the most wonderful day and year filled with joy and happiness! 🎂🎈
March 26th was Dr. Lindhorst’s birthday! We are wishing our kind, adventurous, and awesome boss lots of joy today and everyday! 🎂🎈
Are you looking for a fun way to teach your child about the dentist or what to expect for their first visit?! We have lots of fun books in our office that you can also find at your favorite bookstore or online that will help your child learn about all things related to the dentist. They can learn about how to brush, floss, wiggle their first tooth, what to do when the tooth fairy comes, what to expect for their first cleaning or first filling, and much more! You’ll even see some of their favorite cartoons and characters!
Are there any you love that aren’t shown here? We’d love to hear about them!! Tell us in the comments below!
In light of the outbreak of COVID-19 and recommendations from the CDC for social distancing, we unfortunately have to postpone our Annual Patient Appreciation Party that was scheduled for April 1st. As soon as we’re able to reschedule for a later date, we will update you!
We wish all of our amazing patients, families and colleagues good health as we navigate this difficult time.
Congratulations to our lucky charm for winning Employee of the Month one more time!
From the moment you either speak to her on the phone or walk in our office you are welcomed with excellent customer care and enthusiasm!! Thank you for everything you do and for bringing excitement and joy to our office!! We are LUCKY!!
Please join us for our 3rd annual Patient Appreciation Party! Enjoy food, drinks and family fun with us as we THANK YOU FOR ANOTHER GREAT YEAR!
Please RSVP by March 14th, 2020 to 713-861-4000 or info@heightspedoortho.com
It’s contest time!! We have a jar full of green and gold candy (no, not to eat... sorry!!!). Take your guess at how many chocolates are in the jar, and whoever has the closest guess wins a special prize from the Heights Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics team! So stop by our office, and take your guess! Good luck!
With Valentine’s Day just a couple of days away and so many fun parties we are sure you have planned, we want to provide some recommendations on healthy sweets and treats to share with your loved ones, but also the ones to be careful of. We’re looking out for healthy teeth and healthy smiles!!
You want to avoid the sticky, gooey, chewy things! These are candies and sweets such as fruit snacks, fruit roll-ups, gummy bears, jelly beans, skittles, airheads, now & laters, taffy, toffee, caramel, etc. These types of treats stick to the grooves of the teeth for a LONG time and are not easily cleansed by our saliva. Sugars that are in sticky form have the greatest risk for cavities!
You want to avoid the hard candies, too. These are jolly ranchers, life savers, lollipops, etc. These also stick to the teeth and are difficult to come off. This means they spend a long time exposing the teeth to sugar and acid damage.
Finally, you want to avoid those high acidic candies. These include sour candies, sour sprays, fun dip, altoids, sweet tarts, sprees, etc. Acid is dangerous to the outside enamel layer of teeth, and when it causes breakdown, then a cavity forms.
Healthier sweet or snack options include chocolates because they melt, peanuts which produce salivary flow, and fruits like apples and cranberries that have natural sugars and inhibit bacteria from adhering to the teeth! Trail mix typically has a mix of nuts, seeds, grains, dried fruit, and chocolate so you are getting fiber, protein, and many beneficial plant compounds. But be careful of the ones with added sugars or granola bar-types because they will have a sticky-sugar component to them.
This month is about creating a healthy start for children’s oral health. If you haven’t met the fabulous Ms. Yvette yet, then be on the lookout for her at your school or daycare! She is traveling around town promoting healthy smiles! She is giving presentations to children and families about brushing, flossing, healthy diet habits, oral hygiene and what routine dental appointments are like so children don’t have to be scared! Enjoy these photos of one of her presentations to kick off the month!
Important Facts to know for children’s dental health:
Tooth decay is the most common childhood disease.
3 out of 5 children are affected by tooth decay.
It is 5 times more common than asthma.
51 million school hours are missed due to oral disease.
It is recommended to see the pediatric dentist by your child’s first birthday!
Brush your child’s teeth twice a day for 2 minutes. Then floss to clean in between the teeth. Parents should help with brushing until they can clearly write their own name.
Fluoride helps to make enamel stronger and protects teeth against cavities by fighting acid & erosion.
One of our team members was a shining star in January and was voted Employee of the Month! Congratulations to…
We are so excited because we finally equipped our practice with an iTero digital scanner! We all loved Dr. Darsey’s scanner from his Memorial office so much that we finally decided that we need one for all our pediatric and orthodontic patients here at Heights Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics.
Want to know what this machine might be??? Well… do you remember those gooey messes that were put in your mouth on plastic trays to get a mold of your teeth? The ones that made you gag? The ones that made a mess of your clothes and stuck in all the crevices of your mouth for the rest of the day? Oh yes, those were fun! But now you can now say goodbye to those! Our iTero scanner is a wand that takes digital pictures of your mouth and sends them directly to a lab that fabricates appliances. We use the scanner for anything from Invisalign to space maintainers for kids in cases of early loss of baby teeth, or expanders for orthodontic movement of teeth and jaws.
It takes just a few minutes to scan the upper and lower jaws. The wand is painless and gives improved accuracy for the lab which in turn can make better fitting appliances. We are super excited about our new scanner and cannot wait to show it off to you!
How adorable is this Dumbo-themed 2nd birthday party at the Children’s Museum of Houston?! Congratulations to our birthday contest winner! We love making our patients happy and helping celebrate your birthday!!
Drop your name in our birthday box when you check in for your next appointment and you could be our next birthday party drawing winner with Heights Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics!
Enamel is that hard, protective, visible outside layer of the tooth. It keeps teeth strong and healthy! Have you ever noticed any discolorations or defects in your child’s tooth? You could be noticing enamel hypoplasia. This condition is a defect that causes a lesser quantity of enamel than normal. It can appear as a white spot, yellow to brown staining, pits, grooves or even thin, chipped or missing parts of enamel. In severe cases, the enamel doesn’t develop at all.
Because of these surface irregularities, hypoplastic teeth can have the following dental problems: more sensitive to heat or cold or pain, more prone to wearing down from grinding or “tooth to tooth contact”, more susceptible to an “acid attack” from the sugars in our foods and drinks, more susceptible to trapping plaque and bacteria, and more prone to tooth decay.
If you see a concerning area on your child’s teeth, then its best to schedule an appointment with your pediatric dentist! It is important to check and monitor these teeth. There are also many different treatment options if necessary depending on the severity of the hypoplasia and the child’s ability to cooperate during dental treatment. Options may include protective sealants, desensitizing agents like Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF), esthetic composite resin or “tooth-colored” fillings, full coverage crowns, or microabrasion. If left untreated, cavities may form and lead to pain or dental infection.
Just because a baby tooth has hypoplasia, doesn’t mean a permanent tooth will. These irregularities can occur before, during, or after birth of the child. Your primary and permanent teeth are developing at different times.
There are many different causes of enamel hypoplasia from genetics to environmental factors. This list includes: inherited developmental conditions, vitamin deficiencies, maternal illness, medications given to mother prior to birth or to the child during early childhood when teeth are developing, preterm birth, low birthweight, trauma to the teeth, infection, malnutrition, systemic diseases, and smoking or drug abuse.
Good oral hygiene and a healthy diet are important for all of our patients, and especially those with hypoplastic teeth. We recommend brushing twice daily with fluoridated toothpaste. Maintain a diet low in sugar and be sure to avoid those ooey, gooey, sticky snacks! And don’t forget to visit your dentist at least twice a year for a checkup, professional cleaning and fluoride application.
Interested to learn more about dental conditions and some of the services we provide in our office? Check out our clinical updates under the resources tab on our website!
Happy New Year!! We are so excited to announce this year’s very first Employee of the Month! Drum roll please….
Our staff all said that Miss Jackie is always so helpful, happy and smiling!
Check out our “Wall of Fame” and congratulate her the next time you are in the office!! Way to go Jackie!!
This year has been full of lots of laughter and smiles from our patients to our staff. We are truly thankful for our entire Heights community. Thank you for making 2019 a wonderful year! Cheers to 2020!
- Dr. Darsey, Dr. Lindhorst, Dr. Rogers, Dr. Theriot, and the entire Heights Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics Team
