Dental Cleanings
Dental cleaning is a procedure in which you go to a professional dental clinic so they can thoroughly wash and clean your mouth to prevent gum disease and other dental issues. It might sound like dental cleaning is unimportant or it’s the same as regular real hygiene maintenance at home, but that’s not true.
Dental cleaning thoroughly removes all bacteria, plaque, and tartar from your mouth — something you can’t accomplish on your own. It’s recommended that everyone should get dental cleaning done at least once every 3 to 6 months to maintain optimal oral hygiene. Please continue reading for a discussion of why is deep cleaning teeth necessary and the regular dental cleaning procedure.
Why is Deep Cleaning Teeth Necessary?
In order to maintain your oral hygiene perfectly, you should brush twice a day, floss after every meal, and rinse your mouth with an antibacterial mouthwash. But that’s often not enough to remove every last trace of food particles stuck between your teeth or over the gum line. You can’t reach the deep recesses of your mouth or remove all the tiny food particles. As such, these food particles accumulate and eventually turn into a sticky white substance called plaque. This, in turn, eventually hardens into tartar.
Once you have plaque and tartar, they’re extremely hard to remove from your teeth on your own. They also invite bacterial infection and decay. Over time, the bacteria can spread out, infecting your gums and bones. When this happens, pockets of space form between your teeth and gums, pulling them apart and leading to gum recession. In healthy gums, the pockets should never exceed 3 millimeters in depth, but they can expand beyond 5 millimeters if you have gum disease.
Over time, this can lead to dangerous oral conditions like gingivitis and periodontitis. First, you’ll suffer from toothaches, persistent bad breath, and yellowing teeth. Over time, however, your gums may start bleeding, your teeth will start rotting, and you’ll eventually have to undergo complex procedures like root canal or even tooth extraction.
Basically, allowing plaque and tartar to grow and spread can have dangerous consequences. The only way to prevent gum disease altogether is to go for regular deep cleaning of teeth so the dentist can remove all traces of food particles, plaque, and tartar from your mouth.
Regular Dental Cleaning Procedure
Deep cleaning comprises a series of fairly simple procedures that are usually carried out by a dental hygienist. The following are some of the most important steps involved in a regular dental cleaning procedure.
Teeth Dentist Examination
The dental hygienist will first examine your mouth using a small mirror and a light. They’ll try to assess the quality of your teeth, presence of plaque and tartar, and signs of gum disease. This will allow them to proceed with the dental cleaning procedure.
Deep Cleaning Scaling and Root Planing
Scaling and Root Planing are the two most important steps in the dental cleaning procedure. Scaling is a procedure by which the dental hygienist uses a scalar device to scrape off all the plaque and tartar from every part of your teeth and mouth. The root planing step is only necessary if you’re already suffering from gum disease and if there’s a pocket of space between your gums and teeth. In that case, the dental hygienist will smoothen the roots and reattach the gums to your teeth. This will prevent gum disease from getting worse.
Fluoride Treatment
After scaling and root planing are done, the dental hygienist will thoroughly brush your mouth using an electric toothbrush and an abrasive toothpaste that scrubs the enamel. The dental hygienist will also floss your teeth to remove any remaining traces of plaque and tartar and instruct you on the ideal way to floss your teeth. Next, you’ll have to rinse your mouth with a fluoride solution to get rid of the bacteria. Finally, the dental hygienist will apply a fluoride paste to a mouthpiece and you’ll have to wear it for a minute to protect your teeth for the coming months.
Teeth Cleaning for Children
In case of children, teeth cleaning will also include a procedure in which the dental hygienist will apply molar sealants to prevent cavities.
What to do After Routine Teeth Cleaning?
After a routine teeth cleaning session, you simply have to maintain your oral health by following these tips:
- Brush your teeth with a dentist-recommended toothpaste twice a day.
- Floss your teeth as the dentist has recommended after every meal.
- Use a dentist-recommended antibacterial mouthwash once a day.
- Go for regular teeth cleaning appointments once every 3 to 6 months.
Schedule your Dental Deep Cleaning
What are the Types of Teeth Cleaning?
There are primarily three types of teeth cleaning, all of which accomplish the same thing but are carried out for different reasons.
Prophylaxis Cleaning
Prophylaxis Cleaning is a routine dental cleaning for patients who simply want to maintain their oral health. This type of cleaning also removes all the plaque and tartar but it’s only done on healthy teeth.
Deep Cleaning
Deep Cleaning is a type of teeth cleaning that focuses on scaling and root planing. This type of cleaning is done on patients who have a high risk of gum disease or those who are already suffering from early signs of gum disease.
Gross Debridement
Gross Debridement is a type of teeth cleaning usually conducted by the dentist if the patient hasn’t had professional teeth cleaning for over a year and if they have large amounts of accumulated plaque and tartar in their mouth.
Frequently Asked Questions about Dental Cleanings
Does Repeated Scaling Damage our Teeth?
Repeated and frequent scaling has the potential to wear down your enamel. That’s why dentists recommend that you receive dental cleaning once every 3 to 6 months — in order to protect your enamel.
What’s the Difference Between Tooth Scaling and Root Planing?
Tooth scaling is only done to remove plaque and tartar from your teeth and it can be done even if your teeth are currently completely healthy. Root planing involves smoothing out the root’s surface to reattach the gums to the teeth — which means it can only be done if you’re already suffering from gum disease.
Can Tooth Scaling Strengthen a Loose Tooth?
Scaling removes all of the accumulated plaque and tartar from the gum line. As such, yes, tooth scaling can strengthen a loose tooth.
How Frequent Should One get the Scaling of the Teeth Done?
Dentists usually recommend that you should go for regular dental cleaning appointments for scaling once every 3 to 6 months. It depends on the quality of your gums and bone, which is why the dentist will recommend the frequency of scaling.
Schedule your Dental Deep Cleaning
Here, at URBN Dental Uptown , we thoroughly assess the quality of your teeth, gums, and bone structure to determine how frequently you should get dental deep cleaning done. Our dental hygienists thoroughly clean your teeth in order to restore your oral health. For more information, please schedule your dental deep cleaning today.