Dental Cleanings and X-Rays
Finding a new dentist can be challenging. When visiting your local dentist there may be a lot involved, checking to see if you have insurance, getting pricing information, and reading all the reviews, you often forget when your first visit was. Fortunately, we make this process seamless, during your first dentist appointment, you can position yourself as a patient in our office and you will get to know the staff and our overall process. We will do an initial assessment, review your dental history, and assist you with cleaning and x-rays.
In addition to providing smile makeovers to residents of Long Beach and the surrounding areas, we also provide the following general dentistry services in Long Beach: Cavities, Wisdom Teeth / Oral Surgery, Endodontic Surgery, Mouthguards, Nightguards, TMD Treatment, Emergency Dental Care, Sedation Dentistry, Sealants, and Fluoride Treatment.
Cleaning is often one of the most dreaded moments for patients when they visit our Long Beach Dentist office. But with a little more understanding, our patients understand the importance of regular cleaning and checkups.
Our dental hygienists divide teeth cleaning into six parts. We will explain each of them with a brief overview below.
The Cleaning
Cleaning is often one of the most dreaded moments for patients when they visit our Long Beach Dentist office. But with a little more understanding, our patients understand the importance of regular cleaning and checkups.
Our dental hygienists divide teeth cleaning into six parts. We will explain each of them with a brief overview below.
Physical Exam: Our dental hygienist will do a physical exam before starting anything with your teeth. We use a small mirror to spot impending problems. These problems can include periodontal disease, severe plaque buildup, tooth loss or damage.
Removal of plague and tartar: Our dental hygienists will use small mirrors and scrapers to remove previously accumulated tartar and plague. This usually sounds discomforting, but it’s not a complicated process. The more buildup on your teeth, the longer this process will take.
Gritty Toothpaste Cleaning: In a professional dental setting, gritty toothpaste is safe to use nearly twice a year. However, trying to do the same at home can damage your tooth enamel. Our dental hygienists brush and clean teeth with a special electric toothbrush and professional cleaning toothpaste.
Flossing your teeth: When our dental hygienist uses dental floss, we’ll look for sensitive spots on bleeding gums and remove plaque buildup while flossing.
Rinse: Rinsing removes stains that would not come out before, as it cleans and polishes teeth and removes most of the stains or debris.
Fluoride Treatment: Fluoride treatment helps preserve tooth decay by adding a protective coating to the teeth. Fluoride hardens when you salivate, so you can eat and drink immediately after leaving our office.
The second part of your checkup may include an x-ray. X-rays use low levels of radiation to photograph the inside of your teeth.
These images will help us identify problems that cannot be seen with the naked eye. X-rays help us diagnose cavities, tooth decay, or teeth that may be impacted.
X-rays are usually done at your first visit or whenever we feel the need to do so. Some of the factors that affect frame rate:
- Your Age
- Current oral health
- History
- Any symptoms of oral disease
Children tend to get more dental x-rays than adults to make sure their teeth are developing correctly.
Regular dentist appointments are an essential part of your dental health. Your oral health also affects other aspects of the body. Therefore, it is crucial to solve the problem as soon as possible. If you would like to schedule a dentist appointment with us, please contact us today at 562-912-9007.
