Why Are Regular Trips To The Dentist Important?

Taking a trip to your dentist every six months is vital if you want to maintain optimal oral health. You should also practice good oral hygiene between visits to ensure healthy teeth and gums. Here’s a look at various procedures and checks that occur during visits, as well as why you should visit your dentist if you are undergoing orthodontic treatment.

What Occurs During a Dental Visit?

Your dentist will usually perform two types of procedures during each visit. He or she will do a general check-up, as well as a cleaning and scaling. Check-ups consist of the following:

• Your dentist will first check your teeth and gums for cavities. This will include a check for plaque and tartar. This check is imperative, as tartar build-up leads to gum disease.
• Your gums will also be checked with an apparatus that determines whether the spaces between your gums and teeth are normal. If the spaces are deep, then you may have an underlying gum disease. Shallow spaces are usually indicative of healthy gums.

Your dentist may also include a check of your neck, throat, face and tongue for other diseases.

What a Cleaning Entails

You cannot remove hardened plaque or tartar from your teeth with home-based oral hygiene such as brushing and flossing. It’s therefore important to opt for a cleaning with your dentist, as he or she uses special equipment for the removal of stubborn tartar. This removal is done during scaling.

Your dentist will polish your teeth with a substance resembling a paste after the scaling.

Next, your dentist makes use of a special floss to ensure that the spaces between your teeth are free from impurities and food particles.

The Importance of Dental Visits During Orthodontic Treatment

It is not recommended to skip regular check-ups with your dentist just because you are undergoing orthodontic treatment. The orthodontist is performing an orthodontic treatment only, and is not responsible for the treatment of cavities, nor cleanings. Here’s a look at why you should continue with regular dental visits, even though you’re receiving treatment from an orthodontist:

• You’ll find it near impossible to get to all those hard to reach places if you are wearing an orthodontic appliance such as braces. A dental visit will ensure that you receive the necessary cleaning of plaque and tartar, so your mouth remains healthy and cavity-free. Imagine having cavities or gum disease once your braces are removed. That need not be if you opt for dental visits during your treatment.
• Be careful of de-calcification during orthodontic treatments. This is actually when your teeth lose calcium, making you more prone to cavities. Your dentist will be able to identity whether your teeth have de-calcified, and treat them.
• You may be lengthening your treatment time if you have to have your orthodontic appliance removed to treat cavities or gum disease.

Tips for Good Oral Hygiene between Dental Visits

• Brush twice every day with a fluoride-based toothpaste
• Floss daily
• Use a mouthwash for added protection against cavities and for fresher breath

At Gables Sedation Dentistry, we know you want your smile to always be at its best. Regular visits to our office will ensure that your teeth and gums remain healthy and strong.