Dental Hygienist Keeping You Fresh!
Get a healthier, brighter smile with Karen or Grace, our registered dental hygienists. You can reduce the risk of gum disease and tooth decay with regular professional scaling and polishing. Making a hygienist appointment is easy.
Hygienist Reviews
"Probably the best dentist and dental hygienist I have been to! No pain, gave me back a great smile and healthy gums!"
Expert Dental Hygienist Cleaning
Professional teeth cleaning with a registered dental hygienist is essential to remove acid-forming plaque that builds up around teeth and below the gum line. A build-up of tartar, which is plaque that has hardened over time, erodes tooth enamel and irritates the gums, causing tooth decay and inflammation which can progress to more serious periodontitis that requires professional gum disease treatment to save your smile. Therefore, a regular visit to the hygienist is as vital as a regular dentist check-up and good oral care at home to maintain your teeth for life. Studies show that professional teeth cleaning, scaling and root planing dramatically reduce the risk of gum disease. Additionally, studies show that poor oral hygiene causes 90% of halitosis cases (also known as bad breath), a sure sign of plaque buildup.
Karen and Grace’s Expert Teeth Cleaning Service
An effective clean takes a full hour. While cleaning, our hygienists meticulously monitor the health of your gums around each tooth. They check for the development of pockets between the tooth and gum, which show early signs of gum disease. The development of pockets is more common than most people realise. Identifying these pockets helps you to apply extra attention to any problem areas when brushing and flossing. It is easier to remedy the early stages of gum disease through regular professional cleaning than it is to treat advanced periodontitis. Professional teeth cleaning together with dental x-rays are the most effective ways to monitor and protect your dental health to avoid gum disease, bone loss and tooth loss.
How Dental Hygienist Teeth Cleaning Compares to Daily Brushing
Professional scaling and polishing remove plaque and tartar (hardened plaque), cleaning teeth in places where a toothbrush can’t reach. A hygienist can remove the tartar which contains acid-producing bacteria that produce volatile sulphur compounds from below the gumline. This volatile compound causes bad breath, and the acidic nature erodes the tooth enamel and causes gum inflammation. If left untreated, the bacteria eventually cause tooth decay and gum disease. Regular visits to the hygienist keep your breath fresh and limit your chance of future dental problems, which can easily go unnoticed until it is too late, resulting in tooth loss later in life.
Stages of Gum Disease
Preventative Dental Hygiene
Our practice promotes regular preventative dentistry. It is affordable, beneficial for your general health, saves your natural teeth, and eliminates the need for costly restorations later in life. Located at 377 Mt Albert Rd, Mt Roskill, we welcome all patients to our practice, where you will be cared for like family. You can contact us or book online right now.
Benefits of Professional Teeth Cleaning
- a brighter smile
- fresh breath
- prevent gum disease
- prevent tooth decay along the gum line
- protect brain and heart health
Dental Hygiene FAQs
It is optimal to get your teeth professionally scaled and polished once every six months or at least once a year. Acid-producing plaque and tartar, can erode your tooth enamel and irritate your gums if left untreated. Plaque and tartar can build up very quickly below the gumline where your toothbrush cannot reach, especially with a diet that contains sugars. Preventative dentistry is the core of our practice as it is the best way to avoid gum disease and tooth loss. Regular cleaning will also keep your breath fresh.
A professional dental clean takes 60 minutes to thoroughly remove a build-up of tartar and plaque. The hygienist checks for the development of pockets between the tooth and gum to detect early signs of common gum disease. She also monitors the health of your gums around each tooth and records any adverse progression. If you have not had your teeth cleaned in a while and you experiencing inflamed gums, you may require more than one appointment.
Prevent tooth loss
Professional teeth cleaning removes sticky dental plaque which contains acid-forming bacteria. If not removed, these acids can break down the tooth enamel over time, leading to tooth decay or tooth loss.
Prevent gum disease
Plaque buildup can eventually lead to gum disease. Gingivitis symptoms which are tender or swollen gums that sometimes bleed are the first sign of gum disease. If left untreated it can progress to severe periodontal (gum) disease where the gum tissue pulls away from the teeth, allowing the bacteria to destroy the underlying bone that supports the teeth.
Keep your breath fresh
Tartar can create pockets or small openings to form between the teeth and gums collecting food, bacteria, and dental plaque, causing bad breath also known as halitosis. A dental cleaning removes this debris and ongoing oral maintenance can help eliminate these spaces and restore gum health.
Professional teeth cleaning does not cause pain. A mild level of discomfort may be experienced depending on the degree of tartar buildup on your teeth. If you have extremely sensitive teeth you can talk to the hygienist about applying a numbing cream or local anaesthetic to alleviate any discomfort during the teeth cleaning procedure.