Your pearly whites are designed to last your entire life; they are coated with the sturdiest substance in your body, enamel. Just like most things in life, you have to care for them. You must show them tender, loving care every other day to stay healthy and strong. If you don’t, you will have to deal with tooth decay, gum disease, and other oral health issues.
Irrespective of how proficient you are in cleaning your teeth, your teeth still need that extra boost to stay healthy and strong. So, this is why we recommend you come to our Brentwood dental office for dental exams and cleanings.
Dental exams and cleanings in Los Angeles are necessary for oral health care, so you must incorporate these services into your health care plan.
About Dental Cleanings and Exams
The most common preventive services in dentistry must be cleanings and examinations. They are the backbone of proper oral health. Dental exams enable our dentist to look at your teeth, gums, mouth, and throat to check for any issues.
Your oral health affects much more than just your teeth. Some diseases that you may have stemmed directly from your oral health. The converse is also true since diseases such as diabetes and heart disease directly affect oral health. So, dental exams are vital to your oral and overall health.
A typical dental visit will not be complete without undergoing professional teeth cleaning. You might clean your teeth religiously each day but still not remove all the plaque. That’s why you must visit our dentist at least twice yearly for cleaning. But if our dentist sees the need to, you will have to visit us as recommended, ideally three or four times a year.
When you take advantage of dental exams and cleanings, you have a better chance of dealing with issues before they worsen, and maintaining your smile is way easier.
How Long Does Teeth Cleaning Last?
Teeth cleaning will not take much of your time. If there are no other issues, you can come in during lunch break, and you leave our dental office with clean pearly whites within the hour. Yes, it’s that fast! You only have to spare 30 minutes to an hour of your time to get your teeth cleaned.
Your appointment might only take longer if you came in for an examination and cleaning. If this is the case, you might have to take x-rays and discuss the issues that the x-ray reveals.
The Procedure for Dental Exams and Cleanings
Dental exams and cleanings are straightforward treatments that will not take much of your time.
This is how it goes:
Initial Oral Examination
You will lie back in a comfortable chair as our dentist uses a mirror to peek into your mouth. If our dentist detects apparent issues, they will let you know. However, if there is something more severe, the cleaning may need to take a back seat to deal with the issue before proceeding.
If there’s nothing severe, our dentist will proceed with cleaning your teeth.
Plaque and Tartar Removal
The daily oral hygiene routine that includes brushing and flossing is a fantastic way of dealing with plaque. When dealing with plaque, you can hit a snug if it is hiding between your teeth and gum line. So, you will need our dentist to remove plaque from these areas.
So, our dentist will use a specialized cleaning tool (scaler) that can reach and clean those areas without hurting your teeth. The scaler is designed to remove plaque and tartar from the teeth.
Polishing Your Teeth
We will go to the next stage when our dentist is sure that your teeth are plaque-and tartar-free. Our dentist will use a gritty tooth polish and a high-powered toothbrush to polish your teeth. You will also get the opportunity to choose your favorite flavor of polish.
Don’t be alarmed when you hear the whirring toothbrush since it doesn’t hurt.
Flossing Between Teeth
When you get to this stage, you are on the last lap. Our dentist will take a dental floss to clean your teeth to remove any plaque hiding between your teeth.
Rinsing
Our dentist will complete the dental cleaning by squirting water into your mouth and asking you to swish. Then, our dentist will remove the water using suction when you are through.
At this stage, your teeth should be clean and ready to go. But before you leave, our dentist will check your teeth once again to see if any other issues stand out. If there’s nothing, you are free to leave.
