Our community has been through a lot due to the ongoing pandemic, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your health and safety.

Infection control has always been a top priority of our dental practice, and you may have seen that we take great pride in this. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep the patients, staff, and the ones we come in contact with in our daily lives safe.

Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued.

Upon the emergence of COVID-19, here are some additional measures we take to ensure your safety:
  • Our office will communicate with you beforehand to ask some screening questions. You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office, and we will be taking your temperature. Based on your answers and if your temperature is 100.4°F or higher, we will need to reschedule your appointment.
  • We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in other places in the office for you to use as needed.
  • You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, children’s toys and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect. Similarly, please limit the personal belongings that you bring inside to your appointment.
  • Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients when possible. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment. Please respect the social distancing requirement of 6 feet where practical.
  • We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time. To that end, please consider calling from your car to check on the status of the reception area and be on time. Also, please come alone to your appointments. If needed, one guardian/caretaker is permitted, but they must remain in the reception area.
  • Please arrive with face masks/coverings for they will be required at all times for both patients and staff when appropriate.
  • An antiseptic mouth rinse will be used just prior to treatment for the health and safety of all. Where possible, expect changes in how we do certain procedures to eliminate or reduce the spread of aerosols and splatter during treatment. For example, for now we will be temporarily eliminating ultrasonic tools and teeth polishing during your teeth cleaning appointments until further notice.
  • Clear sneeze guard barriers between you and our front desk personnel will be used to aid in social distancing, and we ask that we all limit our conversations to what’s necessary to limit contact time. More regular and frequent sanitizing of high touch areas and items will be done for your health and safety. This includes door and other handles, light switches, countertops, etc.
We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call our office at 415-752-8311 .

Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors, and friends.

Sincerely,
Dr. Leo Arellano

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Personalized Dental Implants for Tooth Replacement in San Francisco, CA

Personalized Dental Implants for Tooth Replacement - San Francisco, CA

What Are Dental Implants?

Dental implants are a way of replacing a missing tooth or teeth. They act as substitute tooth roots which are then connected to single crownsbridges, partial and full dentures to help support, stabilize, and retain them. 

What Are The Benefits Of Dental Implants?

Dental implants allow the replacement of teeth without treating or drilling on our own natural teeth that do not need treatment. Because of this, they are considered a more conservative treatment when replacing missing teeth. Also, dental implants, like natural teeth, stop continued jawbone loss — 25% in the first year, 40 to 60% in 3 to 5 years, and about 1% every year thereafter — after a tooth is lost.

What Are The Benefits Of Dental Implants?

What Are The Benefits Of Dental Implants?
Video Transcript

Are you missing a single tooth? In the past, the dentist had to grind two adjacent teeth, however perfect and healthy, to support a partial denture. This caused irrevocable damage to the supporting teeth and made it easy for contaminates to accumulate in the space between the denture and the gums, promoting Gingivitis, deterioration of the bone around the teeth, and recession of the gums. All of this resulted in an unattractive appearance and eventually the loss of the adjacent teeth. MIS dental implant technology is the solution. The screw is inserted into the bone under local anesthesia. Within a few months, this initial implant will become a firm foundation set naturally in position, replacing the natural root. The space of the missing tooth is filled by a temporary crown. The permanent crown is completed again by a truly simple process. The size and distance are measured and the color of the natural teeth is examined in order to create a perfect match with the new crown. The crown is secured into the implant using a screw or special cement, using no anesthesia and causing no pain. The implant does not damage any of the other teeth, plus it feels and looks like a truly integral part of the mouth.


Finally, dental implants allow us to keep teeth separated so that only the teeth needing work are treated. Everything we do in dentistry may need to be reworked in the future. If teeth are connected together, then even if some of the parts are not defective they will all need to be replaced if connected together, resulting in more complex treatment at a higher cost. 

What Is The Success Rate Of Dental Implants?

Studies show that dental implants have a success rate from the mid to high 90% after five years. Many things can influence this from your general health and lifestyle to the complexity of the required treatment needed to insert the dental implant. 

Replacing teeth and restoring smiles with dental implants

Replacing teeth and restoring smiles with dental implants
Video Transcript

Dental implants are titanium roots that are replaced in the jawbone to resemble a tooth or group of teeth. A screw is inserted through the gums and into the jawbone. A porcelain crown is then attached to the screw to become the new tooth or teeth. They can be used to support dental prosthesis, including crowns, dentures, and bridges. Today’s treatments are so natural looking, no one will know you had surgery. There is approximately a 95 percent success rate for all implants. With modern advances in dentistry, some implants can be restored immediately with lifelike all-porcelain crowns. For more details, ask your dentist.


Are Dental Implants Worth The Cost?

We expect our investment in dental care to provide that same quality of life that natural healthy teeth do. Dental implants fulfill this by being most like our own natural teeth in the way they look, feel, and function. Since dental implants offer the most value, they are worth more compared to bridges, dentures, and partial dentures. But, just as with your own teeth, they are susceptible to their own form of gum disease and to the detrimental affects of a stressful bite.

Real Patients Real Results

Before and After Photos

Crowded teeth and failing root canal tooth needing extraction corrected with Invisalign®, bleaching, and dental implant.

Photo by Dr. Leo Arellano

Dental Implants – BNA Image – 11-1
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What our patients are saying...

originally posted on Google
5.0

Dr. Arellano has been my dentist since 1989 and I believe he is the best of the best! I have experienced many uncomfortable dental procedures in the past, many due to painful injections. Dr. Arellano has excellent technique in anesthetizing that results in painless injections. He truly cares about his patients and his work. His staff, especially Mei, is extraordinary and will go above and beyond to work in appointments, assist in resolving payment/insurance issues, referrals, etc. Dr. Arellano and his team have always provided excellent care and service over the years. I highly recommend him for your dental care.

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