Our general dentistry services are designed to help you and your loved ones maintain healthy and happy smiles.

General Dentistry

A healthy smile is essential for overall wellness, and your teeth and gums require regular maintenance to ensure they remain comfortable and disease-free.

We offer comprehensive general dentistry to our patients to help them enjoy optimal oral health and a smile that functions comfortably.

Preventive Dentistry

We strive to prevent dental conditions whenever possible. With regular dental exams, cleanings, and x-rays, we can often detect dental conditions in their earliest stages before they pose a severe risk to your smile.

During a comprehensive dental exam, we evaluate the health of each tooth and look for signs of periodontal (gum) disease. If we find anything that requires treatment, we will let you know right away.
Our dental cleanings help keep your teeth clean and your gums healthy, as well as give you a smooth, fresh smile. Our hygienist removes plaque and tartar from tooth surfaces and finishes with a polishing, so your teeth look and feel completely clean.
Dental x-rays help us diagnose conditions that we cannot see with a visual exam alone. These include cavities, infections, bone loss, and certain types of cysts and tumors.

We typically recommend a dental exam and cleaning every six months unless you have a dental condition like gum disease that may require more frequent visits.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is general dentistry?

You probably see the words general dentist on local signs and online, but may wonder what that means.

Just like your primary care physician, your general dentist is your main point of contact for your oral health. General dentists provide most non-specialty services that patients of all ages need to stay healthy.

This includes preventive dentistry such as:

Dental exams
Cleanings
X-rays
Fluoride treatments
Dental sealants
Mouthguards for sports
Nightguards

General dentists also repair teeth that suffer from decay, fractures, or trauma. Restorative dentistry refers to:

Fillings
Bonding
Dental crowns

Teeth replacement is a big part of general dentistry and is designed to keep your smile looking good and to make sure you can eat a healthy diet.

Bridges
Partial dentures
Dentures

Since cosmetic dentistry is not a dental specialty, most general dentists are the ones who will be designing a beautiful smile and offering enhancements such as:

Teeth whitening
Cosmetic bonding
Tooth-colored fillings and crowns
Porcelain veneers

If you have a dental question, need help or advice, your general or family dentist will be able to make treatment recommendations for you. If you require a trip to a specialist, general dentists usually have specialists in their professional network that they know and trust.

Restorative Dentistry

Whether you require a dental filling, crown, or dental bonding, we can repair your teeth to protect them and extend comfortable function.

Fillings — Fillings are used to repair a tooth after removing decay.
Crowns — Crowns protect and stabilize a cracked or deeply decayed tooth.
Bonding — Bonding fills in small chips and narrows gaps between teeth for cosmetic purposes or to prevent stains or decay.

When providing restorative dentistry, we make sure that the results are comfortable and long-lasting.

Tooth-Replacement Options

Saving your natural teeth is a priority for us, but sometimes it is necessary to remove a tooth to relieve painful symptoms, or when restoring it is not an option. However, having a gap in your smile is not ideal for your appearance or for chewing and speaking comfortably.

We offer the following tooth replacement options:

Fixed dental bridges — replace a missing tooth by anchoring an artificial tooth in place using two healthy teeth
Dental implants — replace a missing tooth by surgically implanting a replacement root and placing a dental crown
Dentures — replace all teeth on the upper or lower arch with a removable prosthetic
Partial dentures – replace one or more missing teeth by anchoring a prosthetic to your remaining natural teeth

A comprehensive dental exam allows us to recommend one of these options to restore your smile and ability to eat and speak comfortably again.

Contact Us to Schedule a Dental Appointment

Give us a call to schedule your next dental appointment. We look forward to welcoming you!

Our Team

Meet More of Our Team

Dr. Paige Elwood DDS

Dr. Paige Elwood is proud to serve the Yankton community as the owner and dentist at Elwood Family Dental Care. A native of Yankton, Dr. Elwood brings a personal touch to her practice, caring for generations of families she has known for years. She finds immense joy in working with patients of all ages and loves the variety that dentistry brings to her daily life.

Dr. Elwood earned her undergraduate degree from the University of South Dakota before completing her dental education at the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of ...

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Testimonial

My visits to Dr. Elwoods office are always very thorough.

My visits to Dr. Elwoods office are always very thorough. Dr. Elwood and her staff are always great to explain the procedures and what I can do to improve the care of my teeth. Sandy is awesome to help explain all aspects about insurance options.

- Deanna

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