Dental Hygiene
What is a Dental Hygienist
Dental Hygienists work together with your dentist to actively maintain your oral health. They specialise in providing individualised preventive dental treatment, through thorough removal of plaque and calculus, prepare the mouth for complex restorative care and also demonstrate correct home care to patients to assist in preventing dental disease.
Hygienists perform 4 main functions;
- Oral hygiene instructions, tailored to the individual’s needs, including instructions on caring for your gums and teeth and information on dietary habits and health conditions which may be adversely affecting your oral health.
- Collaborate with your dentist to plan an oral health maintenance program.
- Removal of calculus deposits and stains from teeth.
- Application of decay preventing agents and recommendation of dental care aids for home use.
Why are regular Dental Hygiene appointments so important?
Gingivitis and periodontal disease, commonly referred to as gum disease, can be prevented by having an active maintain program in place. Knowing effective home plaque control techniques can help prevent gum disease and tooth decay. By actively maintaining your oral health, with the assistance of our Hygienists, it is less likely for your oral health to progress into more serious dental ailments resulting in extensive and costly treatment.
Why doesn’t the dentist do the clean?
Dental Hygienists have been specially trained to perform active maintenance and preventive treatment for your mouth, teeth and gums. It allows the dentist to focus on providing complex restorative or cosmetic care, whilst knowing their patient are receiving specialised treatment from their hygienists.
Tooth Whitening
Is it safe to have your teeth whitened?
Tooth whitening has been used in dental surgeries for many years and no serious adverse effects have been reported from tooth whitening in a dental surgery. Tooth Whitening does not affect the quality or the colour of existing restorations and does not soften or damage tooth enamel or structure.
How much lighter will my teeth become?
Individual results vary and will depend on your initial tooth colour, oral hygiene habits and diet. As a general rule, it is said that you will achieve your natural tooth colour, that is, the tooth colour you were born with.
How long does the whitening last for?
Typically, the Tooth Whitening performed in the dental chair may last for a few years. However, with regular use of the home ‘top-up’ bleaching kit, results can last for much longer. Other factors such as smoking, poor oral hygiene and diet can affect the longevity of the results.
How does tooth whitening work?
There are two types of tooth whitening:
1. In surgery Tooth Whitening or ‘BriteSmile’. BriteSmile uses a combination of a hydrogen peroxide gel and a gentle blue light (not UV or laser). The actual whitening procedure takes 1hour in the dental chair; however the appointment time is between 90 and 120mins to allow for set up and de-brief time.
2. Take Home Whitening involves wearing customised trays containing a hydrogen peroxide solution, for a 30minute period, once every day, for 10 to 14 days. Three separate short appointments are required. The initial is to take some impression of your teeth, so the trays can be made. About a week later, the trays can be fitted and the starting shade is noted. You can then start the whitening. After the whitening process you would then come back for the final appointment, where the finish shade is taken.
Computerised Dentistry – CEREC
What is it made out of?
A CEREC restoration is milled from a solid block of special dental ceramic that is colour matched to your natural tooth colour.
How long will the appointment take?
Depending on the size of the restoration whole procedure will usually take around an hour and a half.
How long will it last?
CEREC restorations are made of dental porcelain and will not break down with saliva or normal chewing. With proper care and regular check-up’s they can last for twenty years or more!
Will my CEREC change colour if I whiten my teeth?
Unfortunately no. If you are interested in enhancing your smile we recommend you whiten first so we can match your CEREC restoration to your brand new brighter smile!
Why have an inlay/onlay rather than a crown?
When preparing for a crown much of the tooth structure has to be removed leaving only a small “stump”. An inlay/onlay allows you to retain a lot more of your natural tooth structure. Inlay’s/Onlay’s are also ideal to replace most ugly old metal fillings. If you have a large filling to be replaced this means that the middle of your tooth is already missing. An inlay will save the remainder of your tooth whereas a crown will destroy most of the remainder of your tooth.
Veneers
Do they look and feel natural?
Veneers are very natural looking. A very thin layer of porcelain is colour matched to your other teeth then bonded using a tooth coloured bond. Photos are taken at your first appointment and these are sent to the lab so that the colour and shape can be perfected to give you a beautiful natural looking smile that fits in perfectly with your other teeth.
Can I still eat normally with Veneers?
You can certainly eat normally with veneers but like all restorations we recommend you avoid foods which are particularly hard and crunchy and things like biting ice!
Crowns
What are crowns made out of?
Crowns can be made of several different materials. Porcelain crowns give a natural appearance. Semi-precious gold crowns are used when strength is very important. A combination of metal fused to porcelain can also be used. The dentist will go through which option is best suited to you at your appointment.
Why would I need a crown?
Crowns are used to seal a tooth after it has had a root treatment. This is the best way to seal the tooth properly to prevent any further infection. Crowns are also often used when there is not enough natural tooth structure left to place a filling this will prevent infection spreading and greatly decrease the need for root treatment. Crowns can also be used to repair a tooth that has been fractured or badly damaged.
Bridges
What are the benefits of a bridge?
A bridge is a great way to reverse the negative impact of missing teeth. As well as enhancing your smile and improving your speech, it will restore your natural bite which will also prevent unnatural stress on the other teeth. A bridge will also keep the teeth that are opposing or adjacent to a space from shifting or tilting which could result in further bone loss or periodontal disease.
What is the best way to care for your bridge?
Bridges can be easily cared for using a combination of your normal brushing techniques and flossing using a specialised wide floss or floss threader. We also recommend avoiding extremely sticky foods like, gums or toffees and crunchy foods like hard sweets or ice cubes. Upon issue of your bridge our friendly Dental Hygienists will go through the proper care with you.
White Fillings
Will my white fillings change colour when I have my teeth whitened?
Unfortunately the colour of your white fillings will not lighten with tooth whitening. You can however, have the more visible white fillings at the front easily removed and replaced with another filling better colour matched to your newly whitened teeth.
What are white fillings made of?
The natural looking white fillings are made of resin. The resin is placed into the mouth and bonded with a special tooth bond and then set with a LED light. These fillings cannot be compared to the porcelain restorations which are much stronger and made outside the mouth then bonded into position.
Implants
What involved in having an implant?
After a consultation with our specialist you will have a 3D OPG x-ray. Your surgical appointment will then be booked. At this appointment the implant will be placed. After letting the implant fuse to the bone (this will take a few months) the dentist will place a post. Once again this will need some time to heal whilst the gum tissue grows around it. Finally the dentist will make a special crown to match your other teeth and this will be fitted to your implant.
Will it hurt?
There will be some tenderness and swelling after the initial surgical appointment and we recommend a diet of soft, cool foods for the first few days. Pain medication can also be prescribed to help ease any discomfort.