When it comes to your oral health, it can be easy to dismiss or ignore some of the terminology associated with various conditions or procedures. It makes sense. Why would you need to know about a treatment or disease you don’t need or have? However, if you don’t take care of your teeth, you could end up with some of these issues before you know it. If you take a little time to familiarize yourself with some dental conditions and procedures ahead of time, you have a better chance at avoiding them in the future. One such condition is “gingivitis.” You may know that it’s gum disease, but the general knowledge usually stops about there. Let’s pull the curtain back on gingivitis and find out what exactly this condition is and how best to avoid it. (more…)
Who Could Use a Dental Checkup?
Any medicine you buy and use comes with “Use Directions.” That way, you know how best to use the medicine and for whom the medicine is intended. When it comes to dental procedures, you can take the same outlook. You need to find the right procedure for the right person. When it comes to general dentistry — like a dental checkup and exam — how do you determine who needs care? It’s kind of a trick question, because everyone could use a dental checkup. From the time a child’s first tooth erupts, through their entire adult life, everyone needs dental checkups. These checkups serve as vital opportunities for a oral healthcare professional to make sure everything is going well. (more…)
Moving Forward with Tooth Extraction
When you were a kid, you may have relished the chance to lose a tooth. Losing a tooth often meant a visit from the tooth fairy, and some sort of collateral for your trouble. When you lose a tooth as an adult, no one is there to offer you money for the exchange, so it can be a frightening prospect. Why then would anyone volunteer to lose a tooth? Tooth extraction may be recommended by your dentist in cases where the original tooth is so damaged that a dental restoration can’t save it. Broken or highly compromised teeth can actually present a danger to surrounding teeth, so it may be that extraction is your best option. What’s important is that you focus on how to proceed as you move forward after tooth extraction. (more…)
A Deep Clean Through Scaling and Root Planing
Everyone knows what it’s like to deep clean something. Maybe you spruce up your bathroom or kitchen from time to time. However, you still need to deep clean these places every so often in order to get stains out of the grout work. Deep cleaning is an important part of maintaining a sanitary environment. The same goes for your mouth. Brushing and flossing regularly is like light cleaning. However, if you don’t clean thoroughly, bacteria can still develop in pockets. When this happens along your gum line, you’re at risk for gingivitis. A deep cleaning — through scaling and root planing — can rid these areas of bacteria and keep you gum-disease-free. (more…)
Do You Remember Your Last Dental X-rays?
Sure, it can be difficult to remember when exactly you made a particular trip to the doctor’s or dentist’s office, but x-rays are a pretty memorable experience. There’s a special bib and a machine involved. If you have absolutely no recollection of your most recent dental x-rays, then it’s probably time for new ones. If you’ve been regularly attending your biannual exams and cleanings, then your dentist would have ordered the x-rays when appropriate. Dental x-rays are so valuable because they give your dentist a more complete picture of the status and health of your teeth. He or she can spot any problem areas as the develop, so that your teeth stay healthy. This is especially important for children, whose quickly developing teeth need consistent attention. (more…)
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