General
Dental Care

During your visit to Halton Village Dental for a comprehensive dental cleaning and exam, or during regular checkups and you can expect the following:

Dental X-rays
Dental cleaning and exams
Sealants
Oral hygiene aids
Home care instructions

Most dentists recommend dental x-rays for first-time patients. At Georgetown Village Dental, we use the information supplied by dental x-rays to accurately and safely detect dental abnormalities and to inform an accurate treatment plan.

Radiographs are a diagnostic tool which provides powerful information that is not available to the naked eye during a regular dental examination. Without dental x-rays, serious problems may go undetected, including:

• Developmental abnormalities
• Poor placement of roots and teeth
• Problems in the tooth or below the gum line
• Dental decay between teeth
• Cysts and abscesses
• Tumors (malignant and non-cancerous)
• Problems with individual teeth or below the gum line

Early detection can help alleviate the time and costs of treating serious dental problems to save you from unnecessary discomfort.

It’s important to note that dental x-rays are considered safe. The amount of radiation exposure from a series of full mouth dental x-rays is approximately equal to the radiation the average person is exposed to from natural environmental sources every day. In addition, at Georgetown Village Dental we take additional precautions to further reduce your exposure using lead aprons and fast film.

Next, your Halton Village Dental dentist will perform a comprehensive dental exam using the x-rays as a guide for the detection of issues with root and tooth positions, bone loss, cysts, tumors, and decay. At the same time, your dentist will check your gums, throat, tongue, lips, neck and face for signs of oral cancer.

Periodontal disease is a common issue, and your dentist will evaluate your gums and the bone around your teeth for signs of gum disease.

Next, the surfaces of your teeth will be checked using special instruments to determine if there is any tooth decay.

The dentist will also check any existing restorations to ensure that they are still intact.

A Registered Dental Hygienist will perform a professional dental cleaning, which is also known as dental prophylaxis to:

• • Remove plaque, the sticky film that tends to form on the teeth. Plaque is a combination of saliva, food debris and a colony of living bacteria that can cause inflammation and result in periodontal disease.
  • Remove tartar (calculus), which is a hardened plaque that has attached itself to the tooth surface. Special dental instruments must be used to remove calculus that has formed around the gum line.

Polish teeth to remove stains that are not typically removed during scaling and brushing.

Your dentist may recommend applying a thin plastic coating to the chewing surface of your teeth. Since the majority of dental decay starts in the deep grooves (fissures or pits) of your teeth, they are hard to clean. However, the sealant seals the deep grooves to create a smoother, easier-to-clean surface.

Finally, your dentist will provide you with custom advice on taking care of your teeth at home. Proper maintenance and proper oral hygiene can help ensure that your teeth remain in tip-top shape.

Daily oral hygiene can help prevent dental issues that affect your overall health.

Schedule an appointment with Halton Village Dental today!