Dental cleanings are a crucial part of maintaining oral hygiene and protecting your overall health. If you’re looking for help in keeping your smile bright and confident, our dental team at Southside Medical Center in Atlanta, GA, is ready to help.
Do Dental Cleanings Remove Tartar?
Remove Tartar Safely
Dental cleanings are a safe and effective way to get rid of plaque and tartar. Plaque is a sticky material that forms on the teeth due to bacteria. Even patients who try to clean their teeth thoroughly may miss bits of plaque over time, which will then harden into tartar.
Our team has the tools and experience needed to safely and thoroughly remove pesky tartar from your teeth. This can help prevent tooth decay and gum disease.
Remove Tartar Professionally
Some patients may find themselves wondering why they can’t just buy a dental kit and try to remove tartar on their own. Patients may even try a range of DIY mouth-washes that promise to get rid of tartar. The problem is that this approach may not be entirely effective, and you may even risk harming your teeth.
Our dental team has years of experience and training, so we know how to remove tartar safely. Tartar is a very tough substance. Patients who don’t have experience removing it could risk accidentally scraping away their teeth’s protective enamel. If you lose your enamel, you could leave your teeth even more vulnerable to disease. This is why trying to remove tartar by yourself may not pay off well in the long run.
What Are the Benefits of Having Tartar Removed?
Prevent Decay
Brushing your teeth twice a day, and flossing once a day can go a long way toward preventing plaque accumulation. Patients may assume that if they’re on top of their daily cleaning. Unfortunately, plaque can start growing in hard-to-reach places, and you may not even realize you have tartar forming until it’s too late.
By coming in for routine cleanings, you can rest easy knowing the tartar is being taken care of. By staying on top of your oral health, you can protect your teeth from decay. This has the added benefit of potentially saving you some money down the road; keeping your smile healthy tends to pay off!
Brighten Your Smile
Tartar can be yellow, brown, or any shade in-between. This tough calculus can change both the color and texture of your teeth, which can affect a patient’s confidence in their smile. Removing tartar allows your smile to glow again.
Improve Your Breath
Many patients assume that bad breath is caused by the food they eat. Some may try to pop a mint in-between meals to cover the smell.
While freshening up with a mint or brushing between meals can be helpful for bad breath, sometimes the culprit behind bad breath is simply a buildup of tartar. If you’ve been struggling to keep your breath smelling fresh no matter how much you brush or what you eat, having a thorough dental cleaning could help.
Protect Your Health
There are numerous studies that suggest a correlation between oral and heart health. Gum diseases like gingivitis can have a negative effect on the well-being of your cardiovascular system. Having tartar regularly and professionally removed may reduce your risk for high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, and other heart diseases.
What Other Services Do We Offer?
Fluoride Treatments
Fluoride treatments are a quick and easy way to protect your dental health. This fast and painless treatment can be a great option for patients who want to make sure they take the right steps toward protecting their smiles. Fluoride treatments can help protect your teeth’s existing enamel as well as restore damaged enamel through remineralization.
Benefits of Fluoride Treatments
Your body is able to use fluoride to both support and rebuild tooth enamel. This naturally-occurring mineral can also reverse the early signs of tooth decay. While many patients already intake some fluoride through fluoridated water or toothpaste, a direct, professional application can help offer your teeth an additional shield of protection.
Saliva naturally contains calcium and phosphate. These minerals help repair compromised tooth enamel. Fluoride is able to mimic saliva in this way since it also contains calcium and phosphate. This treatment can be especially helpful for patients who are more at risk for tooth erosion or decay. For instance, patients with weakened enamel, dental crowns, poor oral health, or dry mouths may all find a fluoride varnish helpful in supporting the health of their teeth.
Fillings
When you have a cavity, it’s important to get it repaired as quickly as possible. This can help save the tooth and protect your health. When it’s time for a filling, we’ll start with removing all the decayed tissue from the tooth. Then we’ll use a filling material to fill the cleaned cavity.
Benefits of Dental Fillings
A dental filling can stop decay from progressing any further. It can also protect the damaged tooth and help spare you from early tooth loss. The treated tooth should be able to look and function as normal. Fillings can also guard your tooth against the invasion of harmful bacteria.
Extractions
Teeth that have been affected by severe periodontal disease, are decayed beyond hope of repair, or have suffered a bad break or split may need to be extracted.
While we will try to save your tooth if at all possible, sometimes an extraction is the best way to solve a severe issue. Other reasons for extraction can include teeth that are impacted or poorly positioned. Some orthodontic treatments may also require tooth extraction.
Benefits of a Tooth Extraction
A severely unhealthy tooth can be a health risk. To help protect you from infection, and the rest of your teeth from harm, badly damaged or diseased teeth may need to be removed. This can help relieve tooth pain and protect the integrity and functionality of your smile.
Referrals
Patients who are looking for full or partial dentures don’t always know how to start that process. Our team is happy to help by referring patients of all ages, so they can enjoy a complete smile again.
FAQ About Dental Cleanings
1. How Often Should I Schedule Dental Cleanings?
It’s generally recommended that people come in for a routine dental exam and cleaning every six months or so. This plan may be personalized due to a patient’s unique needs. As we get to know your dental needs better, we can let you know how often we recommend you visit us so we can maintain your oral health the best that we possibly can.
2. What Can I Expect During a Dental Appointment?
Our experienced oral hygienists and dental providers will discuss any concerns you have during your visit. For instance, if you have specific concerns about your gum or teeth health or any sort of dental or jaw pain, we can talk about that with you.
We will examine your teeth for irregularities. If necessary, we may also examine your tongue, throat, neck, head, and face to check for structural abnormalities, signs of cancer, or swelling that could indicate an infection. During your cleaning, we’ll get rid of plaque and tartar build-up to support your health.
3. When Should I Bring My Child to the Dentist?
We recommend your child’s first general exam be carried out when they’re three years old. By the time your child is five years old, a complete dental exam is recommended.
4. Is There a Right Technique for Brushing at Home?
Professional cleanings are important, but it’s also important to make sure you’re taking good care of your teeth in between your dental cleanings. While we’ve mentioned the importance of brushing twice a day and flossing once a day, sometimes patients don’t know exactly how they should be brushing their teeth. In our busy world, it’s easy to rush through the process.
Many patients will scrub their teeth harder to make up for not brushing as long as they should. In reality, brushing your teeth too hard can actually damage your tooth enamel. It’s recommended that you gently brush your teeth for two minutes. This will help you clean your teeth thoroughly and safely.
Are You Ready To Protect Your Smile?
Our team of experienced professionals are proud to provide high-quality healthcare for our patients. We want you to not only achieve a healthier smile, but to be confident and happy with it. If you have any questions about our services, we would be happy to answer them for you. Reach out to us at Southside Medical Center in Atlanta, GA, today to schedule your consultation!