Dr. Craig Sommer has been caring for the downtown Colorado Springs business and professional community since 1992.  He truly is your downtown dentist located in the Plaza of the Rockies building at Colorado and Tejon.

Dr. Sommer has lived in both the city and rural areas of Calfornia. Starting in Brentwood, in the Los Angeles area, he  attended UCLA dental school.  

Following graduation he received additional training in a general practice residency program at the Los Angeles Wadsworth Veterans Administration Hospital .

Dr. Sommer returned home to Colorado after practicing in Northern California for over 10 years.  Dr. Sommer's goal was to return to Colorado Springs ever since attending a Boy Scout Jamboree here in his early teens.

An expanding body of research indicates that proper dental treatment has a major impact on your general health.… including the relationship of dental plaque to stroke and heart attack.

Heart Disease
Several theories exist to explain the link between periodontal disease and heart disease. One theory is that oral bacteria can affect the heart when they enter the blood stream, attaching to fatty plaques in the coronary arteries (heart blood vessels) and contributing to clot formation. Coronary artery disease is characterized by a thickening of the walls of the coronary arteries due to the buildup of fatty proteins. Blood clots can obstruct normal blood flow, restricting the amount of nutrients and oxygen required for the heart to function properly. This may lead to heart attacks.- American Academy of Periodontology

Stroke
Additional studies have pointed to a relationship between periodontal disease and stroke. In one study that looked at the causal relationship of oral infection as a risk factor for stroke, people diagnosed with acute cerebrovascular ischemia were found more likely to have an oral infection when compared to those in the control group.- American Academy of Periodontology

The relationship of dental health to proper immune system function is also being seriously studied.

Immune System Function
CHICAGO – November 14, 2006 – Researchers from the University of Connecticut Health Center report an interrelationship between periodontal and systemic inflammation in solid-organ-transplant recipients. This study appears in this month’s issue of the Journal of Periodontology.

"Periodontal Disease May Negatively Affect the Success of Organ Transplant Survival"  Given the association between transplant rejection and levels of interleukin-6, a molecule also found in high levels in periodontal inflammation, researchers explored the possible association between chronic periodontitis and transplant rejection.

“With research and science advancing every day, the life expectancy after organ transplantation is on a steady rise,” said Preston D. Miller, DDS and AAP president. “Further studies monitoring periodontal disease, IL-6 and transplant tissues are needed to provide conclusive evidence that periodontal inflammation may have negative effects on long-term transplant survival.”

Did you know that "SILVER FILLINGS" contain more MERCURY than any other metal. Truth in labeling? The FDA has recently changed its position on dental amalgam fillings as of June 2008.  This is what their website says:

"What are the safety concerns about dental amalgam?
Dental amalgams contain mercury, which may have neurotoxic effects on the nervous systems of developing children and fetuses. When amalgam fillings are placed in teeth or removed from teeth, they release mercury vapor. Mercury vapor is also released during chewing. FDA’s rulemaking (described in question 7) will examine evidence concerning whether release of mercury vapor can cause health problems, including neurological disorders, in children and fetuses."

These are some of the serious potential dangers of mercury amalgam fillings and more information is currently being gathered now.  We are awaiting the FDA's final opinion.