Check Ups and Dental Hygiene

Dental Examination

What is it?

The dental examination shows how healthy you mouth is. After the examination, you and your dentist can discuss the results and plan the best way to deal with any problems.

What will my dentist do?

As well as looking in your mouth, the dentist will ask you some questions.

These may include the following:

• Why you’ve come for an examination;
• Any problems you’ve noticed (such as pain or sensitivity);
• Your general health and any medicines you might be taking (because these can affect your dental care);
• Your diet (because sugary snack and drinks can cause tooth decay);
• How you clean your teeth (because correct cleaning helps prevent tooth decay and gum disease);
• Smoking and drinking (because both can harm your mouth).

The questions will depend on what the dentist sees in you mouth.

You should expect your dentist to:

• Look at your face and neck to see that they are healthy;
• Feel under your jaw;
• Look inside your mouth, at your tongue, your cheeks and lips, roof of you mouth and back of your throat (places where there might be a problem that you can’t see or feel);
• Look at your teeth and gums to see whether they are healthy or whether there are signs of decay, damage or gum disease (for children, your dentist will also look at the tooth and jaw development in case orthodontic treatment might be needed now or later);
• Compare your mouth now with how it was when they last saw you;
• Decide whether they need more information from x-rays, or from plaster models showing how your teeth bite together; and
• Tell you about any treatment you need explaining the choices and whether there will be any cost.

The examination may take longer if you are seeing a new dentist for the first time.

What are the benefits?

• Regular examinations mean that your dentist can spot problems and correct them early before the treatment becomes complicated.
• A thorough examination helps you and your dentist look after your mouth and prevent future problems. The dentist will explain the options and then you can decide together what will be best for you.

Scaling and Polishing

What is this?

A ‘scale and polish’ cleans your teeth very thoroughly.

Scaling removes the hard tartar which forms on your teeth like scale inside a kettle. You can’t remove it just by brushing your teeth. Scaling also removes trapped food and plaque containing millions of germs which can cause tooth decay and gum disease. Stains from coffee, tea, cigarettes or red wine are also cleaned away when your dentist polishes your teeth.

A dentist or dental hygienist will scale your teeth. If you clean your teeth very thoroughly anyway, your scale and polish will take less time.

What happens?

There are two ways to scale teeth:

• Hand scalers – these come in different sizes and shapes, to reach different parts of your teeth. This is why you will see the dentist or hygienist changing instruments quite often.
• Electric scalers – these use very fast vibration with water. The water is sucked out of your mouth. A hand scaler is used to check whether the teeth are completely clean.

For polishing, your dentist will use a rotating brush or rubber polisher with toothpaste.

Scaling cleans above and below the gums. If you have gum disease, scaling needs to be deeper, around the roots of the teeth.

This is called ‘root planing’. Your dentist may give you a local anaesthetic to make it more comfortable.

Your dentist or dental hygienist will tell you about the best way to clean your teeth and gums thoroughly at home.

What are the benefits?

• Regular scaling and polishing by a dentist or hygienist helps keep your teeth and gums healthy by making it easier for you to keep your teeth clean at home. You should see and feel the difference.
• If your gums bleed when you brush, you may have early gum disease. Regular scaling helps to stop the disease getting worse.
• Gum disease can cause bad breath, which you can prevent by regular scaling and cleaning your teeth thoroughly at home.

Mouth Guards

We provide a range of sports mouth guards in various thicknesses, colours and logos.

We also provide guards to reduce symptoms of night grinding.