Preventive Care

Helping you achieve and maintain a healthy, attractive smile is our goal. This is the reason why we emphasize our preventive services. Regular exams, radiographs and cleanings are essential in preventing decay and gum disease. Dental problems get worse when they’re not treated so catching disease early helps avoid serious complications later and decreases the amount of time and money spent in the dental chair. Preventive care is key in keeping your teeth for a lifetime.

Comprehensive Oral Health Evaluations

Our goal is to help everyone achieve a healthy, attractive smile. To be able to help you, we must be able to understand your current state of health.

The first appointment will include:

• Review of your Health and Dental History
  By understanding your health issues and medications we can better design a program that optimally meets your oral health needs.
• Oral Cancer Screening
  We are committed to the prevention of oral cancer through early identification of pre-cancerous conditions. We provide an oral cancer screening at each preventive appointment.
• Periodontal Exam
  Periodontal disease is the leading cause of tooth loss in the U.S. We will examine your gum tissues to insure that gum disease is detected and treated.
• Occlusal Exam
  The forces of your bite can wear and fracture teeth, cause headaches and damage your joints.
• Caries Exam
  We perform a visual as well as a radiographic exam to locate areas of decay and determine the most conservative treatment available for your needs.
• Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction Exam
  TMD is a condition that affects many people. We examine the muscles, jaw movement and joint function to determine the health of the TMJ.

Every five years we complete a comprehensive exam on existing patients. It gives us a chance to re-evaluate all aspects of your oral health, compare findings to previous years, and discuss where you want your oral health to be in the next five years and beyond.
Routine exams are important in preventive care. At least yearly we will do an exam but we recommend an exam every 6 months to be able to catch disease early and prevent serious problems from occurring. The longer a problem, such as a cavity, goes on, the worse it gets with time.

Cleaning

This important appointment allows the dentist and the hygienists to monitor your oral health. Routine cleanings help promote healthy gums and teeth by removing the plaque and calculus that causes decay and gum infection and educating you about prevention. A healthy smile leads to a healthy body. For more information, read about gum disease.

Oral Cancer Screening

There are 35,000 people diagnosed with oral cancer in the U.S. each year. If you smoke or use smokeless tobacco, you are 2-3 times at greater risk. Almost 8,000 deaths were attributed to oral cancer in the past year. We are committed to the prevention of oral cancer through early identification of pre-cancerous conditions, and provide oral cancer screenings at each preventive care appointment.

Digital Radiographs

Radiographs (x-rays) help provide a complete picture of what is going on with your oral health. They allow the dentist to see areas that he can’t with just a visual exam. X-rays allow us to better diagnose and treat cavities, periodontal disease, infections and pathology such as cysts or tumors.
X-rays are a preventive service because it helps us to catch dental conditions early before they become serious. The earlier the intervention, the less treatment needed.
Digital radiography is safer because it reduces the radiation exposure by 75-80% compared to conventional films. The computerized tools enhance the pictures and allow for greater diagnostic capabilities.

Sealants

Sealants are a thin plastic coating bonded into the grooves and pits of back teeth. This prevents food and bacteria accumulating in the grooves and causing decay. Sealants are ideal for children. Adults can benefit from the protection as well.

Fluoride Treatments

Fluoride applications help to strengthen the enamel making it more difficult for cavities to begin. Rampant decay for children and root caries for adults can be stopped by using fluoride gels or varnishes. It is a great preventive tool. Fluoride also helps with painful sensitive teeth. We offer in-office topical applications and prescription toothpastes that contain 4 times the amount of fluoride in OTC toothpastes.

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