National dental hygiene day, traditionally we think of the Hygienist as the one who cleans our teeth at the biannual check up and cleaning appointment at the dentist’s.
But wait! What is the importance of your cleaning appointment anyway???
When a new or re-care patient visits a dental office for their first appointment – we perform a myriad of important examinations:
- Every patient has their vitals (Blood pressure and heart beat) checked and recorded.
- We ask for a review of medical history and if anything has changed in you medical history including medications since the last time a patient visited us.
- The hygienist then does a thorough examination of the gums and records pocket depth/health of the gums.
- The dentist then performs an evaluation of the face and examines the teeth, bite and gets a report of the gums and general oral health from the hygienist.
- The dentist also performs an Oral Cancer Screening and check for any lumps and bumps in the mouth including the cheeks, veneers and lips area as well.
- The dentist will do a TMJ assessment if that is one of the patient’s complaints.
- The dentist will then piece together the clinical picture for the patient and go over any findings.
- Your dentist may take pictures and record everything so nothing falls through the cracks.
After all the above have been performed we THEN clean your teeth. PHEW!
So in reality, your cleaning appointment is not JUST a cleaning. Your adult/child prophylaxis (fancy way of saying teeth cleaning) is just a small component of a multitude of services your dentist and hygienist perform for you.
So if you are visiting your dentist this November , please thank your Hygienist for all they do!
In my next post I’ll talk about what can happen if we miss a few 6 month recare appointments!