When Your Dentist May Recommend a Deep Cleaning

A professional deep cleaning treatment can help prevent the onset of many dental issues. The dentist will perform a thorough dental check first to see if you need this type of cleaning. This treatment is part of the preventive measures against gum disease. If you want to know when your dentist may suggest a professional dental cleaning for you, here are the details.

What deep cleaning is

This type of extensive oral cleaning is for patients with signs of gum disease. Patients with oral infection, bone loss, bleeding gums, or gum recession need a thorough cleaning from the attending dentist. A deep cleaning treatment is different from a regular dental cleaning. The dentist often gives the patient an anesthetic before starting the procedure. Follow-ups will ensure the disappearance of infection. These visits will also allow gums to heal the right way.

Regular dental cleaning stays above the gumline. It polishes teeth. Then, it removes dental calculus and plaque. Deep cleaning does this same task but goes deeper. This treatment uses scaling and then root planing.

Scaling strips off plaque and dental calculus from underneath the gumline. Root planing removes the rough spots in the tooth root. This then helps the gums reattach to the tooth again. These two procedures result in healthy teeth and gums.

The need for deep cleaning

Routine dental checks can help the dentist find out if the patient needs a deep cleaning. One of the signs the dentist will look for is the depth of the periodontal pockets. The dentist will use a dental probe to push down on the sides of each tooth. Using the probe will make it easy to inspect the area along the gumline.

A healthy pocket depth is about three millimeters or less. The patient will need regular cleaning. A pocket depth higher than three millimeters is a sign of gum recession. The dentist may suggest deep cleaning treatments.

The dentist may also recommend a more thorough dental cleaning if personal oral care is not correcting gingivitis. Using antibacterial mouthwash, brushing, and flossing every day, together with regular dental checks, are ideal ways to prevent gum disease. The dentist will suggest a deep cleaning if these practices are not effective anymore. This extensive cleaning will help the gums heal faster.

A patient with advanced stages of gum disease (periodontitis) will need a deep cleaning treatment. At this stage, there is severe infection in the gums already. This thorough cleaning can even reach the difficult-to-clean areas in the back of the mouth. Removing the sources of infection will help the patient’s teeth and gums achieve optimal healing. Regular cleanings happen during routine dental checks. The dentist will advise getting a thorough cleaning treatment if it has been a very long time since the patient last had a professional dental cleaning.

A deep cleaning treatment is an important part of your dental health

Preventing the progression of gum disease is important. Making this possible is the priority of all dentists. Dentists can determine if you need a deep cleaning through a complete dental examination. This thorough dental cleaning will help initiate the patient’s gum healing and improve your oral health.

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