JiaYLeeDDS

Dental hygiene shouldn’t be regarded as a luxury; it’s crucial to overall health. Scientists have made great progress in recent years learning about the connection between oral infections and non-oral diseases. We at Dr. Jia Lee’s Rancho Cucamonga dental practice have been pleased to see some unexpected areas in which dental health can improve a person’s life, including the management of cirrhosis. The liver plays a crucial role in filtering toxic substances out of the bloodstream. But if it becomes chronically inflamed it can develop scar tissue and won’t function as well. This is how people develop cirrhosis, and one of its consequences is that they suffer widespread inflammation throughout the body. Inflammation in the brain can cause a patient to develop mood swings and a cognitive haze. Gum disease is found in unusually high levels in people with cirrhosis. This is partly because both are associated with smoking and alcohol, but recent studies indicated that people with non-alcoho...

An average of 1.3 million people die in the US every year as the result of a car accident, and fatigued driving is responsible for a lot of accidents.  People living with untreated sleep apnea may not realize how much it impacts their alertness and how dangerous it is to drive.  Dr. Jia Lee and the staff of his dental practice can help you find relief from sleep apnea, so please schedule a visit for evaluation. Patients who don’t seek treatment for their poor sleep may think they are used to feeling tired all the time and are unimpaired.  However, a chronic lack of restful sleep is shown to have the same effects has being intoxicated by drugs or alcohol.  Excessive sleepiness causes problems with focus and attention, which you need in order to drive.  The lack of focusing and inability to react quickly makes for high-risk drivers. If you are planning to drive somewhere but feel sleepy, take a minute to assess your alertness.  A short nap can even revive you for a 30 minute drive.  Caff...

Dr. Jia Lee staff of his   Flossing is crucial when it comes to maintaining great oral health. Cleaning between the teeth is an important step to remove food particles that have been left behind after brushing. Flossing can significantly reduce periodontal disease and cavity-causing causing bacteria that leads to tooth decay, but sometimes the act of flossing is difficult for a patient with orthodontics. Dr. Jia Lee may suggest using a water flosser for those hard to reach places! A safe, easy, and effective way to remove plaque around dental braces is to use a water flosser. A water flosser is a handheld device that sprays streams of water in steady pulses. Not only is this beneficial to patients with traditional braces, water flossers are also an option for people who have trouble controlling traditional floss by hand. It’s important to brush your teeth at least twice a day and floss at least once a day to reap the maximum benefits of a healthy mouth! To learn more about orthodontics...

We would love it everybody’s teeth came in straight, but unfortunately, they sometimes get trapped and don’t erupt fully. Teeth that get stuck are said to be “impacted,” and they can cause a lot of oral health issues. At the Rancho Cucamonga dental office of Dr. Jia Y. Lee, we monitor our teenaged patients’ dental progression to determine whether they’ll need orthodontic care, and if a tooth does get stuck, we can assist them with preventing pericoronitis—infections around a dental crown. The wisdom teeth are the largest and furthest back of the molars, and the lower ones are the teeth that are likeliest to become impacted. They often do not erupt until the late teen years, when the rest of the teeth are in place and the jaws are too solidified for major orthodontic therapy. When a tooth gets stuck erupting half-way, it may still be partially covered by a flap of gum tissue called an operculum. Bacterial build up may occur between the operculum and the tooth, causing a painful, swollen...

As an orthodontic provider, we at Dr. Jia Lee’s Rancho Cucamonga dental office have fixed a lot of gap teeth. Diastema, as they’re commonly known, are the gaps between teeth, and the one between the upper central incisors is a frequent cause of embarrassment and distress. But the exact treatment for them may differ according to their cause. One of the benefits of being both a general dental and an orthodontic office is that we can provide veneers. If the teeth are otherwise in line but the gap in front is just slightly too large, new fronts for the teeth can be used to close it. This might also be an attractive option if the teeth are chipped or scarred. If the teeth are generally jumbled, a gap can be corrected in the course of orthodontic treatment. But if they are being pushed apart by something, treatment may not last unless behavior like tongue thrusting and thumb sucking stops. Assistance from a psychologist or an ear-nose-and-throat doctor may be required to stop involuntary ton...

Smoking will exacerbate any respiratory condition, and it is proven to cause snoring and lead to obstructive sleep apnea.  Patients struggling with sleep apnea should come see Dr. Jia Lee for evaluation. We can help patients find relief from sleep apnea, but quitting smoking is up to you! Smoking causes upper airway inflammation, meaning the swelling causes the airway to narrow and disrupts the flow of air to the nasal passage and throat.  This causes snoring and obstructive sleep apnea.  Cigarettes are highly addictive, and some smokers seek treatment for sleep apnea like a snore guard or CPAP machine, but continue to smoke. Smoking with sleep apnea not only puts more stress on the heart every day, but negates any treatment a sleep apnea patient is undergoing. Habitual smokers may feel relaxed by one last cigarette for the day, but it actually creates more complications for restful sleep. Smokers can experience nicotine withdrawal overnight, causing more waking up and restlessness.  Q...

Extractions are often necessary to correct misalignments caused by overcrowding. Dr. Jia Y. Lee’s office in Rancho Cucamonga provides for general dental and orthodontic needs, allowing patients to use the same doctor throughout their orthodontic therapy. Our extractions have a very high success rate, but patients need to know how to take care of themselves while recovering. Swelling is a natural, healthy response to the removal of a tooth. Inflammation is the body’s way of concentrating white blood cells and limiting the spread of bacteria. But following a simple extraction, the blood should quickly form a clot that will protect the socket while it closes, making inflammation an unnecessary burden to the patient. Inflammation can be inhibited by applying ice packs in the days immediately following the surgery, but the patient must be careful to not apply ice for longer than fifteen minutes, and to leave fifteen minutes between applications. It takes about a week for swelling to disappe...