What Happens During a Dental Cleaning?
Regardless of how meticulous your oral hygiene practice is, everyone needs regular dental cleanings. These frequent dental appointments allow your dentist to discover diseases such as tooth decay, gum disease, and oral cancer before they become serious. What happens, however, during a dental cleaning? Speak to a dentist in Brookline, MA, to learn more today.
The following are some things you may encounter during a dental cleaning.
Dental X-Rays
Your session will most likely begin with dental X-rays, although you may not have X-rays at every consultation. The hygienist will ask you to bite down on a tiny, square gadget. The X-ray machine will then be moved around your head to take photographs of your whole mouth. This procedure is painless, yet it allows your dentist to examine your teeth and jawbone.
Oral exams
The hygienist will examine the gums and teeth for symptoms of decay or other concerns. To carry out this procedure, he or she will need a small mirror and a little instrument with a hook on the end. If the hygienist detects any concerns that need to be addressed before the cleaning, they will have the dentist examine your mouth before cleaning.
Dental scaling
Dental scaling is the next stage in cleaning. Dental scaling eliminates tartar and plaque from your teeth in a way that simple toothbrushing cannot. The hygienist will remove the plaque and tartar using the little mirror and a tooth scaler once again. You may hear some scraping on your teeth, but you should feel no pain. This procedure usually takes only a few minutes but may take longer if you have a lot of plaque and tartar accumulation.
Deep cleaning
After the tartar and plaque have been removed from your teeth, the hygienist will deep clean them using an electric brush and polisher. This brush produces a high-pitched buzzing sound but does not cause pain. The goal of the deep cleaning is to remove any remaining plaque and tarter that the hygienist could not remove by hand.
The hygienist will use a special toothpaste that tastes and feels similar to the one you probably already use. The key distinction is that the hygienist’s toothpaste has a gritty feel. This texture aids in the effective scrubbing and polishing of the teeth.
Consult a dental professional today!
Professional tooth cleanings are usually done twice a year, and X-rays are done once a year. To avoid issues completely, the key is to continue seeing the dentist for regular dental cleanings. If you know what is happening, you will feel more at ease — and maybe even look forward to these appointments.
