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Can you remember how you last brushed your teeth?
For many of us, this routine is so deeply ingrained that we do it automatically, and without paying much attention. Often we will follow the same routine we learned during childhood.
Unfortunately, when you don’t pay attention to your brushing routine, it is all too easy to leave out some areas. Even when you do pay attention and try to brush your teeth methodically, you may leave some tooth surfaces uncleaned.
Toothbrushing is essential for removing soft plaque from teeth.
Dental plaque builds up over tooth surfaces every day and contains harmful bacteria. If you leave some dental plaque on your teeth, these bacteria will begin to infect and inflame your gums, causing a condition called gum disease.
After a couple of days, dental plaque calcifies into a harder substance called calculus or tartar. By this time, it can only be removed when you have your teeth cleaned professionally using special hand tools.
The bacteria in tartar will continue infecting and inflaming your gums. What’s more, its presence makes it easier for more plaque to build up over your tooth surfaces. When tartar buildup is substantial, it is often visible around the gum line, looking like a yellowish crusty substance. As you can imagine, tartar can make it appear as if teeth are discolored.
More importantly, tartar increases the risk of gum disease. Unfortunately, gum disease is pretty common. Many people will develop some form of gum disease during their lifetime.
Most people will only have a mild form called gingivitis, and which is characterized by gums that look red and swollen and which easily bleed when you brush or floss. However, some will go on to develop a far more serious form of gum disease called periodontitis.
Periodontitis refers to advanced periodontal disease that is often chronic, meaning it needs ongoing care to keep it under control, but it can never be fully eliminated. Periodontitis can cause tooth loss, which is bad enough.
Even worse, it can impact overall health. Severe gum disease is increasingly linked to many serious health problems including:
If you already have health problems, adding periodontitis to the mix could worsen existing conditions. If you are currently healthy, periodontitis can increase your risk of developing serious health problems.
Ideally, most people will have their teeth cleaned professionally every six months, but your dental office will provide more guidance.
Some people can benefit from more frequent appointments, for example, if they have signs of active gum disease or have existing health problems that increase their risk of developing gum disease.
Most people will book a checkup and clean at the same time, as it is a simple preventive routine that only takes an hour or so to complete; time even the busiest person can afford every six months.
Also, it is much quicker to follow this routine than to wait for dental problems to develop, at which stage you might need for longer, more frequent appointments for treatment that are considerably more expensive too.
Professional dental cleaning is relatively gentle and non-invasive and should be pain-free.
During this treatment, the hygienist or dentist will examine your teeth and gums, and they may gently probe your gums, checking for signs of infection and inflammation.
If present, the gap between your gums and your teeth is larger than normal as the gums start to recede. The hygienist can measure the size of the gap using a periodontal probe.
Healthy gums have a gap of no more than 3mm, and a larger gap could indicate disease or another issue. After measuring these spaces and recording the information, the hygienist will start to clean your teeth.
They may use an ultrasonic scaler and hand instruments to loosen tartar and to scrape or scale it away from your teeth gently. Once all tartar is removed, your teeth are polished carefully, which is a lovely part of the treatment because it helps to remove some surface stains.
When you look in the mirror afterward, you will notice your teeth look slightly brighter and more sparkly. The hygienist will also floss between each tooth, making sure they have removed all tartar from hard-to-reach areas.
While your hygienist cleans your teeth, they can identify areas that you might be regularly missing when you brush and floss. Afterward, they can review your brushing and flossing techniques with you, which can be an extremely helpful exercise.
The hygienist can provide useful information and practical advice on how to make your routine more effective, including which toothbrush and dental floss to use.
If you have active gum disease, professionally cleaning your teeth might be enough, combined with an improved oral care routine at home. Removing tartar buildup gets rid of the bacteria causing the infection and inflammation, giving your gums a chance to heal. For more advanced gum disease, your teeth and gums may need to be deep cleaned.
A deep cleaning called scaling, and root planing is more extensive than an ordinary scale and polish. As well as cleaning your teeth, the hygienist or dentist will also clean tooth roots.
These are tooth roots that have become exposed because of gum recession. Once cleaned, they are smoothed or planed.
Smoothing tooth roots helps the gum tissue to reattach to the roots more easily, and a smooth surface is harder for bacteria to stick to successfully. Scaling and root planning might be an ongoing process that needs repeating every three or four months, helping to control periodontitis.
