One of the biggest advantages of your recommended twice-yearly cleaning at Hills Dental Care? The ability of your dentist to reach and clean areas that are not accessible with your typical tools, your toothbrush or floss. Our gums fit tightly to our teeth, but over time, calculus – plaque and tartar – can often build up beneath the gumline, out of sight, and out of reach.
Plaque and tartar contain bacterial elements that can, over time, damage even the tough enamel on the outside of your teeth. And the environment below the gumline is highly conducive to its propagation. These substances will often create their own small pocket, against the base of a tooth, where they can grow and thrive.
Often, the first indication of any trouble comes via your gums. If they become irritated, swollen, or bleed easily, this can be indicative that they are attempting to fight the bacteria themselves. Left undisturbed, this bacteria can lead to diseases such as periodontitis and gingivitis, or lead to tooth retention problems, and potentially, the need for dental implants.
Luckily, vigilance and proper dental care is able to take care of these problems. Procedures such as dental scraping, along with a proper cleaning that delves underneath the gumline, can remove infected tissues and pockets of bacteria that would do harm to your teeth.
As a further speciality in our field, periodontists can also be recommended. This field of practice occupies another three years of study for a dentist, and allows them to become experts in the field of gums and gum disease. In severe cases of gum recession or inflammation, they can provide treatment, using such specialised procedures as LANAP laser removals.
As we often say at Hills Dental Care, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Come and pay us a visit and take steps to preserve your teeth.
