We all know that a regular dental exam is vital part of good oral hygiene. But not many people know that through dental exams they can save a lot of money, pain and difficulty.
When you have regular dental visits, they can change the course of your dental future. At Premiere Family Dental we recommend that you have a regular dental exam at least once or twice a year, in order to ensure good dental health. For older patients, we recommend bi-annual appointments in order to prevent evolving dental issues.
If you know that dental exams are important but not why exactly, keep on reading.
What goes on during a dental exam?
There are several very predictable steps during all dental exams. The main focus during the procedure is prevention and oral hygiene. Dental exams are actually performed in order to catch potential problems in their early stages, before they grow bigger and cause even bigger problems.
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Q&A
A dental exam’s first step is a medical Q&A in a form of a check-up done by an experienced general dentist and his/her dental assistant. During this stage, if you also schedule a dental cleaning, a dental hygienist will also be present.
The appointment usually starts with a medical history and reviewing of your file (if there is one). Some of the standard questions involve the list of medication you’re currently taking (if any), vitamins and supplements, allergies and well as questions about your diet and alcohol consumption.
Your dentist will also ask you about any medical conditions that you might have and if you’re taking any treatment for them. If we don’t have your file, during a dental exam you should also disclose with us any dental treatment or procedures that you had in the past. Once this step is done, we proceed to the next stage
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Dental exam and investigation
A standard part of the investigation stage would be to thoroughly examine the patient’s teeth, gums, tongue, jaw and the supporting structure. This can include an x-ray and visual inspection. X-ray scans are used to find any abnormalities that are not visible through visual inspection. You might also need to do a full-mouth x-ray, but that is less likely if you have good oral hygiene and visit your dentist regularly for a dental exam.
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Cleaning
Cleaning is an important part of any dental exam or check-up. During this step, the dental hygienists focus is to remove any plaque or tartar buildup from your teeth, in between your teeth and under your gum lines. Thanks to the new and improved techniques and technologies, the cleaning process has become much better and once your teeth are clean, the hygienist will also polish them and give you useful tips on brushing, flossing and how to keep your teeth stain-free for a longer time.
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The actual dental exam
Now that your teeth and gums are perfectly clean, the dentist will once again preform a visual examination and see if there are any potential issues or dental abnormalities. The goal is to see if any dental issues started to happen and also to predict any potential future problems e.g., oral cancer. For many dental issues, early detection means successful treatment and less work both for you and your dentist.
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Education
The final step of any dental exam is to educate the patient on the potential issues he/she discovered. If there might be some problems on the horizon, we will recommend a treatment for it or give you tips on how to care for your teeth and prevent it from happening again.
Why is a routine dental exam important?
The most important part of a dental exam is evaluation. Dentists can take a closer look at your teeth for signs of oral health problems. And when you pay a visit to your dentist regularly, these potential problems can be caught in early stages where they can be either reversed or easily treated. So if you wish to have good oral health, contact us and schedule a dental exam.
