Have you ever wondered why your dentist recommends regular dental examinations and why they are so important?
Dental examinations and hygiene visits are key in the early detection and prevention of dental diseases such as tooth decay, gum disease and periodontal problems and are crucial for long term maintenance of oral health for people of all ages. We all know how expensive restorative dental treatments can be. However, preventive dental treatments are far less costly.
During a dental examination, the dentist identifies tooth decay or abnormalities that may negatively affect the health of the teeth and gums. X-rays are also taken regularly to determine the extent and location of any decay between teeth that cannot be easily detected during a visual examination and to check for any bone loss around teeth. X-rays can also detect underlying developing abnormalities such as tooth abscess, cyst, or tumours. Early detection of such lesions helps to limit the disease spread. Moreover, it prevents damage to the surrounding tooth and tissues.
The dentist evaluates the health of your throat, tongue, and other soft tissues in the mouth and carries out an extra-oral examination checking for redness or swelling associated with the face, head, and neck.
Oral cancer can be detected in its early stages during a dental examination. This greatly helps in treating the lesion successfully without it affecting the health of the surrounding vital tissues.
During a hygienist appointment, the hygienist evaluates the degree of plaque and calculus on the tooth surface. Dental plaque is a sticky layer of bacteria and debris that forms on the surface of the teeth. This plaque hardens over time into calculus. Calculus build-up in the mouth severely affects the health of the gum tissue. It not only leads to bacterial accumulation, which may loosen the gum tissue and can also cause recession of the gums. One of the first signs of gum disease is bleeding and soreness in the mouth.
Routine dental cleaning eliminates the calculus build-up and saves the gums from the adverse effects of calculus and disease-producing bacteria in the mouth.
Gum health is evaluated using a periodontal probe to check the depth of the spaces between the teeth and gums. In a healthy mouth, the gums are firmly attached to the tooth surface. However, people with gum disease may have deep pocket formations.
Extensive gum disease, also known as periodontal disease, often leads to bone loss and tooth mobility.
The hygienist will proceed to clean your teeth. During this procedure, the hygienist uses a scaler to loosen and remove the calculus from the tooth surface and cleans the interdental spaces and areas which are hard to clean with a toothbrush.
After scaling, the tooth surface is polished using a gritty paste to remove the surface stains present on the tooth. Finally, every interdental space is flossed to ensure complete cleaning of the teeth.
Poor oral hygiene hosts disease-producing bacteria in the mouth that affect not only the health of the teeth and gums but also causes bad breath.
Our hygienists effectively clean the teeth and gums by removing the food debris, plaque, and calculus in the mouth—thereby reducing the incidence of bad breath.
Regular dental appointments help you to maintain good relations with your dentist and hygienist.
It is also a great way to familiarise yourself with the dental environment to reduce nervousness and anxiety.
Moreover, it establishes a healthy communication where you can discuss all the concerns you have regarding oral health and overall well-being.
Our smiles play a crucial role in creating a good impression on others. Regular dental examinations help to restore and redefine the health status of your mouth resulting in clean teeth and gums that enhance the appearance of your smile.
It is a fact that our oral health is directly linked with overall health and well-being. There are clinical links between poor oral hygiene and diabetes and heart disease. Moreover, osteoporosis and cancer are also common conditions associated with poor oral health.
Therefore, it is essential to take every preventive measure to maintain the health of your teeth and gums. This will help you to stay healthy.
