The Complete Guide to Teeth Cleaning
The Most Advanced Teeth Cleaning Service
At ArtLab Dentistry of Brentwood and Woodland Hills, we offer the latest dental technology for teeth cleaning and dental checkups along with some of the most advanced dental treatments available.
The advantage of choosing ArtLab Dentistry for your routine dental cleaning is we are home to two award-winning and world-renowned prosthodontists, Dr. Mamaly Reshad and Dr. Arman Torbati. A prosthodontist is a specialist in advanced reconstructive dental procedures. They also have studied an additional three years in an American Dental Association accredited institution.
Dr. Reshad and Dr. Torbati are also recognized experts in the detection, prevention, and treatment of dental diseases and oral conditions --- ones that you may not know you are experiencing and can become more severe if not properly treated. With over 50 years of combined experience in advanced dentistry, Dr. Reshad and Dr. Torbati will ensure your teeth and mouth are at their healthiest, especially for our world-class teeth cleaning service.
About Our Teeth Cleaning Guide
The content in this guide is original and is written and produced by Dr. Mamaly Reshad and Dr. Arman Torbati. Both are renowned experts in the specialized treatment of dental and facial problems that involve restoring damaged or missing teeth and jaw structures.
Dr. Reshad and Dr. Torbati are highly trained specialists in dental cosmetics, dental implants, single and multiple implants, porcelain veneers, All-On-4 dental implants, dentures, bridges, TMJ/TMD, Platelet Rich Fibrin, Teeth In A Day, Sedation Dentistry, Bone Grafting, 3D Imaging, and many more dental procedures.
You can have the confidence as a patient that you are being treated by the very best in dentistry. You're not just getting your teeth cleaned, you are receiving the very best of care for your oral and dental health. If you're looking to learn the essentials to modern dental teeth cleaning you've come to the right place.
Contents
Chapter 1
What Happens During A Teeth Cleaning Procedure? (Step-By-Step)
If you’ve heard it once, you’ve likely heard it a million times. “See your dentist at least once every six months.”
The routine of visiting a dentist for an annual or bi-annual dental checkup is crucial for good oral health and dental hygiene. Advancements in dental technology make going to the dentist fun and stress-free. Most dental clinics are equipped with the latest advancements in dental equipment and are ideal for identifying oral health issues before they become a problem. Furthermore, only a dental professional can provide the kind of professional teeth cleaning experience that can resolve stubborn plaque tartar and long-hardened calculus.
58% of Americans visit a dentist once per year.
Nonetheless, according to the ADA, only 58 percent of Americans surveyed visit a dentist even once a year. So what gives? We know, at least at an intellectual level, that going to the dentist for a professional dental checkup and dental cleaning is crucial for your oral health. Perhaps it is our busy lives and the many competing distractions that make us put off that annual dental cleaning. Alternatively, maybe we find going to the dentist to be a pain (literally). Perhaps, we don’t know what to expect when we go to the dentist. Not knowing, as it turns out, is a big reason many people opt to stay home with good intentions to address it later.
The goal of this teeth cleaning guide is to provide insight about going to the dentist for a checkup and teeth cleaning procedure. I believe this knowledge will give you peace of mind, less stress, and convince you to make teeth cleaning a planned and regular occurrence.
Following is our step-by-step guide of a professional dental cleaning procedure, including information the benefits you receive.
Teeth Cleaning Step-By-Step
The first step in any dental cleaning procedure is, to begin with, a visual examination. Typically this is performed by a trained and certified dental hygienist, although this step can also be supervised and directed by a dentist. Sometimes, a dentist will be necessary to make a more thorough inspection. Especially in the event, the hygienist finds anything unusual in the oral cavity, such as signs of rapid dental decay, periodontitis, or oral cancer.
The hygienist or dentist doing the inspection will likely use a hand-held dental mirror. This mirror behaves like side mirrors in a car and allows the hygienist to see all parts of your mouth and gums. The main objective is to observe if there are any signs of gingivitis, periodontal disease, or any other common oral diseases.
Many, but not all, professional dental cleanings also include diagnostic imaging (x-ray) of the teeth and gums. For obvious reasons, x-rays can only be taken at a professional dental clinic which makes going to the dentist invaluable.
X-rays allow dentists and patients alike to see any potential problems with the teeth, including the existence of cavities and signs of dental damage such as fractures. X-rays also allow the dentist to evaluate the health of your gums and jaw.
Once the visual inspection and imaging are complete, the hygienist will scrape away plaque, tartar, and hardened calculus with a professional tooth known as a scalar. This tool is most useful for the removal of plaque in your mouth. Not only will a hygienist know where to look, but they also have much better access to every nook and cranny of your mouth.
A particularly useful and intense form of scaling, known as root planing, involves the use of a dental planing tool similar to a scalar below the gum line.
Root planing also referred to as “deep cleaning" therapy helps clean the teeth of patients who have periodontal gum disease characterized by gum pockets. Gum pockets easily trap food debris and bacteria and are very difficult to clean on your own. As a result, deep teeth cleaning is crucial for patients with periodontal disease to keep their gums free and clear of debris and bacteria.
After scaling comes the grinding and polishing. This is the noisiest portion of a professional teeth cleaning procedure characterized by the loud whirring and squealing as rapidly rotating brush heads make contact with your teeth. In this process, a special abrasive toothpaste is applied to the rotating heads. The heads clean and polish your teeth, making it more difficult for bacteria to adhere to dental surfaces in the future.
After the noise, comes the string. The hygienist will carefully and methodically floss in and around each tooth, making sure to clean below the gum line and remove any remaining plaque. For those that floss regularly, this portion of the procedure should be no problem. However, for those who do not floss daily, this portion of the process can often be slightly uncomfortable. Patients with gingivitis may also experience bleeding. Bleeding gums after flossing is a sure-fire sign that flossing needs to be a regular part of your oral hygiene regimen.
Once all the cleaning, scraping, polishing, and flossing are completed, it’s time for the final step - fluoride application. While last in order, it is certainly not the least. Removing plaque, tartar, and hardened calculus is essential, but fluoride can prevent the bacteria from damaging your teeth in the first place.
Fluoride is so important for dental and oral health that the CDC has called water fluoridation one of the best public health achievements of the 20th century.
The fluoride the dentist applied to your teeth during a professional dental cleaning is typically in a concentrated, gelatinous form. Often called “pink stuff,” fluoride varnish is applied directly to the teeth. It is not permanent but will cling to your teeth for several hours after application. More importantly, concentrated fluoride varnish will help remineralize your teeth, preventing future cavities.
After your dental cleaning procedure is complete, the supervising dentist will usually sit down with you and discuss the condition of your teeth and gums. If an x-ray were taken as part of your treatment, they would provide a visual of the x-ray on an overhead screen or iPad to show potential problem areas.
During this meeting, the dentist will provide you with oral health advice, make treatment recommendations, and occasionally requesting a follow-up appointment if further treatment is deemed necessary.
