Why Are Regular Dental Checkups & Cleanings Important?
You may wondering why dental checkups and cleanings needs to happen every six months, especially if you don’t seem to be experiencing any dental problems. In most cases, issues arise over time, and the sooner they are identified and treated, the better. In other words, this routine appointment is the perfect opportunity for your Bedford dentist to catch gum disease, cavities, and other problems before they cause serious damage to your smile. Along the same lines, a dental cleaning on a frequent basis helps to keep plaque under control to prevent future issues.
What to Expect During a Dental Checkup
When we perform a dental checkup, we start by asking whether you have had any tooth sensitivity or pain since your last checkup. After that, we thoroughly inspect each tooth. With a mirror and special instruments, we look around every surface for darker areas, which could indicate decay. We then examine your gum tissue to see if it is red, puffy, receding, or showing any other signs of gum disease. Overall, this process can take several minutes but is completely painless. If necessary, we can review our findings with you and recommend treatment to address the issues we see.
What to Expect During a Dental Cleaning
A professional dental cleaning isn’t quite the same as what you do at home. Your hygienist has been trained and is equipped to take off hardened plaque, especially near the gumline and between teeth, where it’s most difficult to clean. Once all the calculus has been removed, your hygienist will use a powered spinning brush to polish each tooth. Then, they will manually floss between your teeth to capture any remaining debris from the cleaning process. Finally, if you choose to, we can put a gel with concentrated fluoride on your teeth, strengthening them against future decay.
