Your Gude To Professional Teeth Cleaning
Posted on: 31 August 2023
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If you have been neglecting your oral health, it's time to schedule a cleaning. Teeth cleaning can drastically reduce your risk of many oral complications. If you would like to know more, keep reading.
What to Expect During a General Cleaning
During a general cleaning, the dentist and/or dental hygienist will:
- Clean your teeth
- Examine your teeth and gums
- Take X-rays
Cleaning involves using a scraper to scrape plaque and tartar off teeth, especially along the gumline and between teeth. Once clean, the dentist checks the mouth, teeth, gums, etc. for signs of distress. X-rays aren't always necessary, but they let the dentist see inside the tooth for signs of decay, infection, and other complications.
Depending on your enamel's health, the dentist may also recommend fluoride treatments. While fluoride can't build new enamel in adults, it can strengthen and remineralizer existing enamel. General cleanings should cause no pain or discomfort except for minor irritation to the gum tissue.
The Advantages of Regular Dental Cleaning
Everyone can benefit from regular professional dental cleaning. In an ideal world, brushing and flossing alone is enough to keep your teeth and gums healthy. However, you're only human, and it's easy to forget to floss, or not brush as efficiently as you should.
When left on teeth, plaque quickly hardens into tartar. This tartar increases the risk of decay, and it may irritate gums, increasing the risk of gum recession and gum disease. Technically, you can remove tartar yourself with the right tools, but without the right training, its' easy to permanently damage your enamel.
Of course, regular dental visits also keep you on top of your oral health. You're less likely to develop complications, and small cavities can be caught before they grow or become infected. Finally, the dentist also monitors for signs of possible oral cancer, boosting the chances of catching it early.
Why the Dentist May Recommend Deep Cleaning
If you have a lot of tartar/debris on your teeth and/or you have gum disease, the dentist may recommend a deep cleaning. During a deep cleaning, the dentist scrapes below the gum tissue, so you may feel some discomfort. As a result, the dentist may recommend a local anesthetic. By cleaning out these pockets between the gum tissue and teeth, your risk of root carries and gum disease lowers.
After a deep clean, the dentist usually smooths the tooth tissue to remove any imperfections. These small imperfections may seem harmless, but bacteria cling to them. Removing them by smoothing the tooth further reduces the risk of decay and disease.
Teeth cleaning may not seem important, especially if you're already brushing and flossing regularly. However, a good professional cleaning can prevent a lot of pain in the future. If you are ready to schedule an appointment, contact a dentist office such as Koehn Dentistry & Aesthetics, in your area today.