How Long Should the Professional Dental Cleaning Take?
Dental exams and cleanings in Conway have a great role in dental health and also influence your overall health. Dentists always recommend professional teeth cleaning twice yearly to reduce tooth decay and gum disease risk.
Unfortunately, some people skip dental cleanings because many have busy lifestyles and worry that teeth cleanings take a long. The good news is teeth cleaning doesn’t take as long as one might think.
Flossing and brushing are essential to oral health. They help remove bacteria, food debris, and plaque that cause tooth decay and gum disease. In addition, bacteria in your mouth feed on starch and sugar in your food to produce acid that damages tooth enamel.
Food particles also combine with saliva to create bacteria-rich plaque, a clear sticky film found at the surface of your teeth. Flossing and brushing help remove plaque and bacteria easily.
If plaque is not removed for some time, it combines with minerals in the saliva to form tartar. Unlike plaque, which is easy to remove, tartar is a hard substance that sticks to your teeth. Tartar builds up between the gum line and your teeth. This is where it inflames and irritates gums to cause disease.
After some time, pockets might develop between the gums and the teeth, which provides a rich environment for bacterial growth below the gum line. Acids from the bacteria attack the tissue and bone that holds the teeth in place, which might lead to tooth loss.
Unfortunately, tartar cannot be removed at home, so one needs professional dental cleaning to remove it.
How Long Does a Cleaning take?
The cleaning takes 30-60 minutes. However, some factors can influence how much time a dental cleaning will take. The factors include
- Your dental health
- Your teeth condition
- The experience that your dental team have
So if your gums and teeth are healthy and free from gum disease, your dental cleaning with Dr. Robert Ellis care will be short. However, the appointment might be longer if you have difficulty removing tartar or if you have gum disease.
The condition of one’s teeth will affect the time required for professional dental cleaning. For example, if your teeth are decayed or broken, they will be more difficult to clean and may require more time.
Also, the experience of your dental team plays an important role. For example, an experienced pediatric dentist in Conway will remove your tartar safely and quickly.
Elements of Professional Teeth Cleaning
Professional teeth cleaning involves several steps. The steps include
Examination of the Gums and Teeth and Evaluation of the Oral Health
Cleaning starts with a thorough examination of the mouth. To do this, your Conway Kids dentist or hygienist will use a small mirror to check for signs of oral problems such as plaque and inflamed gums. The examination will help them identify issues to address during the dental cleaning. Your dental hygienist will alert the dentist about gum disease or cavities. The time it takes will be based on the overall health of your gums and teeth.
Scaling
Next, your hygienist will use a small hook-shaped tool to remove tartar and plaque from the surfaces of your teeth near the gum line. Sometimes your hygienist might choose an ultrasonic scaler that uses the power of water and vibration to remove tartar and plaque.
Polishing and Flossing
Your hygienist, we lose a handheld electric tool and gritty toothpaste to polish your teeth.
They’ll then flows to your teeth to remove any remaining paste or plaque from your teeth.
Fluoride
The pediatric dentist near you will recommend fluoride treatments at the end of the dental cleaning process.
This keeps your tooth enamel strong, and many people benefit from fluoride treatments.
How to Reduce the Amount of Time it Takes for a Dental Cleaning
At Kids First Dental, we understand that people have a busy lifestyle, so we clean their teeth quickly and efficiently. Some of the ways one can speed up the dental cleaning are such as:
- You fill out any necessary paperwork ahead of time
- Bring a return list of medications you take along with a list of any ongoing illness
- Keep your gums and teeth in the best condition through regular flossing and brushing
- Visit your dentist for a professional dental cleaning twice a year