Dental Hygiene
Stonehouse Dental Care is proud to hold preventative dental care at the heart of everything we do. We are passionate about helping patients of all ages maintain happy, healthy teeth for life.
Helping you care for your teeth and gums between visits is the best possible way of gaining and maintaining good oral health. If dental disease is present, improved oral hygiene is essential to help reverse the issue, or prevent it from getting worse in the future.
With our experienced dentists, regular thorough check-ups and clear, easy-to-follow advice, Stonehouse Dental can help you keep your teeth and gums in great condition.
Why Is Oral Health Important?
Without good oral hygiene the bacteria in the mouth can cause decay, gum disease and infections. However, with excellent dental support, and guidance on how to care for your teeth and gums, you can avoid many common, painful dental issues.
In addition, we know that your overall health is connected to your oral health, so your wellbeing is also likely to be better when you have better oral hygiene habits.
What Is Gum Disease?
Healthy gums are central to a healthy mouth, supporting your teeth and keeping your smile strong and functional. If the gums and teeth are not cared for well, gum disease can occur. Early stage gum disease is called gingivitis and common symptoms of it include:
- Bleeding gums after you brush (blood when you spit out toothpaste)
- Sore or swollen gums
- Receding gums
- Tooth sensitivity
- Bad breath
- Spongier gums
- Gums that are a darker red
Gingivitis is caused by plaque and tartar that builds up around the teeth, under the gum line, causing irritation and inflammation. Plaque can be removed with excellent brushing and flossing, but tartar is hardened plaque and needs professional dental cleaning to be removed.
When gum disease is in its early stages, it can be reversed with some help from your dentist, and some hard work from you at home boosting your oral hygiene regime.
If gum disease is not dealt with in its early stages it can progress, which is where it becomes periodontitis. Advanced gum disease is very serious and can lead to lots of gum recession, gum pain, loose teeth and even eventual tooth loss.
What Is Gum Disease Treatment?
If you show signs of gum disease the first thing we will do is remove plaque and tartar buildup on the teeth. This will remove the main cause of irritation that is causing the gum disease and its symptoms. This deep clean with scaling and root surface debridement, is an essential starting point in allowing your gums to heal and stop any further damage being caused by the disease.
In addition to deep clean treatment, we will ensure you have individually tailored oral hygiene advice. This will ensure that you know which products to use, and how to use them so that your teeth and gums can be cleaned well between check-ups. We will then recommend three or six-monthly hygiene visits whilst your gum health is being monitored and we are supporting you to better oral health.
What Hygiene Services Are Available At Stonehouse Dental Care?
Our range of oral hygiene services include:
- Professional cleaning (for hygiene and surface stain removal)
- Gum disease prevention and treatment
- Individual oral hygiene advice and guidance
- Advice and support around medication side effects that affect oral health
- Advice and support around medical condition side effects that affect oral health
Many patients choose to have regular hygiene visits as well as their dental check-ups, as part of their overall health and wellbeing regime. Please call our team on 01698 793636 to book your visit today.