Preventive dentistry involves treatments designed to help you avoid serious oral health issues, including tooth decay and gum disease. Our team wants to help you maintain good oral health, and often that begins with a preventive exam and cleaning. In today’s blog, your Celina, TX, dentist talks about keeping smiles strong with preventive dentistry.
Starting with a Checkup
Preventive dentistry includes checkups and cleanings to keep a close eye on your smile and help you avoid the onset of serious oral health issues. Patients of all ages should see our team about once every six months, so we can catch these concerns in their early stages and before discomfort occurs in any cases. To ensure accuracy and precision with the exam, we will use digital x-rays and intraoral camera technology, so we can obtain detailed and high-definition images, which are transmitted instantly to a chairside monitor. We can walk you through the diagnostic process, so you better understand your smile and the treatments we may need to conduct to keep it whole and beautiful!
Two Kinds of Cleanings
We offer two different types of dental cleanings. The traditional one is administered as part of your six-month checkup visit, and involves our team removing all plaque and tartar buildup with an ultrasonic scaling device and a manual tool. This helps lower the risk of gingivitis and gum disease, and fights against bad breath and teeth stains.
With a perio cleaning, we can help patients who have gingivitis or gum disease, removing the same buildup from both the teeth and the exposed roots, and destroying pockets of harmful bacteria in the process. We use the same tools, but this is more involved and could take more than one visit. With both options, we complete the treatment by polishing teeth, which brightens smiles and limits the ability for plaque and tartar to accumulate before the next visit.
Children’s Dental Care
We also offer children’s dentistry as part of our preventive visits. For kids, we can also offer a checkup and cleanings every few months starting at age two. This is a chance to also instill good oral health habits and help them understand the importance of caring for their smiles. This also limits dental anxiety later in life. To help fight tooth decay, we can also apply a fluoride treatment to the teeth during rh checkup, which strengthens the enamel to make cavities less likely. Since kids often have difficulties reaching the molars when they brush and floss, we can coat these rear teeth in an acrylic layer known as a dental sealant, which prevents cavities from forming in that part of the smile. These can even stay in place for up to ten years!
Silver Diamine Fluoride
When a cavity forms, we offer relief with a filling. But what if we find the decay in the early stages, before a filling is necessary? To help halt the decay and prevent the need or a filling, our team could administer Silver Diamine Fluoride. This instantly stops the decay and protects the tooth. Application only takes a few seconds, and your tooth avoids pain and decay!
Treating Teeth Grinding
Preventive dentistry also allows our team to take on teeth grinding. Bruxism means you grind and clench your teeth on a near nightly basis, which can wear down tooth structure and even crack or chip the teeth. The result is a higher risk of tooth decay and infection, and your teeth could appear shorter than normal too. To prevent further damage, we could offer an oral appliance, a device that looks like a mouthguard and is worn as you sleep. This helps reposition your jaw to ease the underlying stress and strain. There is also now a soft barrier between your upper and lower sets of teeth, preventing further damage to the teeth. The appliance is easy to use and clean, and it can go where you go too!
If you have any questions about how we safeguard smiles with preventive dentistry, or if you would like to schedule a visit with our team for treatment, then contact our office today to get started. You deserve good oral health and an attractive smile, and we want to make it a reality.
Schedule Your Visit for Preventive Dentistry
Our team offers preventive dentistry to help ensure your teeth and gums stay strong and healthy for years to come. Contact Celina Family Dentistry in Celina, TX by calling 214-851-0130 to schedule your next appointment with our team, so we can help your smile truly shine.
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