Here at Bridge Creek Dental, we take dental hygiene seriously. It is the base service we offer to our dental patients, and having your dental hygiene properly attended to is the key to long-lasting oral health.
Defining Dental Hygiene
The term dental hygiene covers the work performed in our dental office and the daily dental cleaning which should be happening at your home.
- In-Office Dental Hygiene – This encompasses your bi-annual dental cleaning where you will have your teeth X-rayed, cleaned and examined by one of our dentists. You will also be given oral care advice to help you care for your teeth and overall oral health between visits.
- Dental Hygiene At Home – For your home dental hygiene, this encompasses your daily care such as brushing your teeth after meals, flossing daily, and any other dental care treatments our dentists have recommended. To maintain your oral health between in-office dental hygiene visits, you will need to stick closely to a healthy at-home dental hygiene regimen.
What You Can Expect From Dental Hygiene Services
Receiving dental hygiene services at Bridge Creek Dental is a fairly straightforward process from start to completion.
- Full mouth dental X-rays – After you have checked in with the front desk, you will be called back into our dental clinic to begin your checkup with full mouth x-rays. This will allow our dentists to see what condition your teeth are in, from the crowns to the roots.
- Scaling teeth – Your teeth will be cleaned of any plaque or tartar that has built up on your teeth. Even the most diligent daily home dental hygiene routine can miss removing the bacteria which causes plaque, which is why it is so important to come for regular cleanings.
- Root planing – This part of the cleaning will clean any exposed roots which have begun to build up plaque or tartar. As your roots are more sensitive than the crowns of your teeth, extra care is given when root planing.
- Dental polishing – The extra gleam of your teeth post-dental hygiene visit isn’t just in your head. We wrap up a cleaning by polishing your teeth and helping them look the best possible.
- Dentist consultation – One of our dentists will consult with you once your cleaning has been finished. This will ensure that nothing was missed during the cleaning, but more importantly, our dentists will be able to check for any potential problems from cavity formations to signs of oral cancer.
Other services you can receive during the course of dental hygiene services being performed are:
- Fluoride treatments – To help strengthen your teeth against future tooth decay, you may receive fluoride treatments or prescription toothpaste with a high concentration of fluoride.
- Sealant treatments – If you have teeth with deep grooves or other areas which are areas for potential cavities, you may be offered sealant treatments to seal those areas. This will make them less vulnerable pockets for bacteria to gather.
- Recommendations for treatment – Should there be problems discovered during the cleaning or our dentists’ examination, then you will be given recommended courses to treat the issue.
Who Should Come In For Dental Hygiene Work
There isn’t a single person who couldn’t benefit from having regular dental hygiene work done, from toddlers to seniors. The reasons may vary slightly depending on circumstances, but overall, to maintain your health, you should be sure to come in for your routine dental hygiene.
What Regular Dental Hygiene Services Prevent
It has been said that an ounce of prevention is worth of cure and when it comes to your oral health, that is certainly true. Many of the common kinds of oral problems can be prevented with regular dental hygiene services and good home dental hygiene. Some problems which can be prevented by dental hygiene services are:
- Gum recession
- Gingivitis
- Periodontitis
- Tooth decay
- Cavities
- Root canals
- Plaque and tartar build-up
- Jawbone density loss
- Bad breath
There are some people who are predisposed to oral health problems, whether due to genetics, disease, or other reasons. However, having a strong dental hygiene is still important to support the overall health of your oral health.
Dental Hygiene Is The Building Block For Cosmetic Dentistry
Cosmetic dentistry is one of the services we offer at Bridge Creek Dental. Our cosmetic dental work is applied hand-in-hand with our dental hygiene services, ensuring your teeth are in the right shape to be worked on.
For instance, if you would like to have your teeth whitened but our dentists discover a cavity during your cleaning consultation, you will need to have it filled before any whitening can occur. Otherwise, the whitening process can hurt and damage the decayed tooth further.
So, to make sure all is ready when you go in for your cosmetic dentistry, be sure to stay on top of your dental hygiene.
Who Cares For Your Dental Hygiene Needs
From the front desk staff to our two exceptional dentists, Bridge Creek Dental has a top-notch staff which is ready to serve your dental hygiene needs. If you want to work with some of the best dental professionals in Billings, Montana, then you will contact us to set up your next dental cleaning appointment.