Protect your oral health with regular dental checkups.
There are many different ways to keep your teeth and gums healthy and beautiful. Regular dental checkups top the list! By scheduling a preventative visit every six months, your dentist can identify and treat any issues as early as possible.
While this is a critical part of optimizing your dental health, you may wonder exactly why it’s so important. After all, as long as you brush and floss twice a day, do you really need to visit the dentist’s office?
The answer is a resounding “yes” and we’re here to explain why. Today, we’re sharing 5 incredible benefits of keeping these appointments, and why they’re the best type of dental insurance around.
What does a regular dental checkup include?
When you attend a preventive hygiene appointment at Dr. Lang’s office in Middletown, Ohio, there are a few routine steps you can expect.
First, your dental hygienist will perform a professional dental cleaning to remove the plaque that’s built up on and between your teeth. They’ll also polish your teeth to lighten any stains and brighten your smile. The cleaning process, known as prophylaxis, also helps your hygienist detect any early signs of dental issues.
Depending on your condition, your hygienist may also provide you with a fluoride treatment to strengthen your teeth and make them more resistant to decay.
When your professional cleaning is complete, Dr. Lang will provide a thorough dental examination. In addition to looking at your teeth and gums, he’ll also screen for certain conditions, such as oral cancer and periodontal disease. He’ll walk through your at-home oral care routine and advise you on any treatments you may need to keep your mouth and teeth healthy.
Is it worth it?
If your teeth and gums are currently in great shape, then you may wonder if regular dental checkups are worth it. This is especially the case if the cost of care exceeds your financial limitations, or if you suffer from dental anxiety.
These concerns could be enough to keep you away from our office, but we encourage you to reconsider. We’re here to support our patients and we can offer resources to make these visits less daunting.
Yes: Here’s Why
While it’s still important to stay on top of your personal dental hygiene, these checkups are about more than cleanings. Here are 5 of the top benefits of scheduling one for you and your family.
1. Prevention Beats Intervention
The dental screenings included in your checkups serve a critical purpose. They help us identify your risk of both small-scale and large-scale dental problems, so we can take measures to prevent them down the road.
For instance, if we notice any type of demineralization on your enamel, we can take immediate steps to strengthen that surface to protect against tooth decay. If you wait until it’s reached a severe stage, then our intervention treatments could be much more complex and time-consuming.
The bottom line? Prevention beats intervention, every single time.
2. Detect Dental Issues Early
If you skipped your regular checkups, then you could leave a potentially dangerous and painful dental condition untreated for far longer than it should be. Issues such as periodontal disease may start out relatively painless, but can quickly progress without proactive treatment.
Early detection can help save you time, money, and pain down the road. Plus, if our team detects an issue early, we can often treat it in fewer visits, which helps to even further reduce the cost of your dental care.
3. Receive Treatment Advice and Recommendations
The internet might be incredibly useful, but no online advice can replace the guidance of your dentist. This professional knows the full extent of your dental history, and can also perform a complete evaluation of your current condition.
Armed with these insights, they can recommend certain dental treatments to improve the form and function of your teeth and gums. For instance, Dr. Lang may recommend a night guard for patients suffering from bruxism. Or, he may recommend a restorative dentistry treatment for patients with cracked, chipped, or missing teeth.
4. Identify Early Stages of Oral Cancer
There are many different symptoms that you might experience in the early stages of oral cancer. These include:
- Growth or sores in your mouth.
- Sore or irritated throat.
- Lesions or uneven areas in your lips, gums, or cheek.
- Hoarseness or vocal changes.
- Unexplained numbness in or around your mouth.
The survival rate for oral cancer is much higher if it’s caught early. Without a dental screening, there’s a chance that it could progress and spread to your surrounding tissues and organs, as well as your lymph nodes.
5. They’re More Affordable Than You Think
Worried about the cost of a routine dental checkup? We’re here to make it as affordable as possible. We never want the price of a visit to discourage anyone from scheduling an appointment, so we offer a variety of payment options, including most major insurances as well as the Care Credit payment plan.
And patients find that those preventative visits always come out cheaper than restorations undertaken after decay or disease sets in.
Schedule regular dental checkups with Great Miami Dental.
When you schedule regular dental checkups at Great Miami Dental in Middletown, OH, you can rest assured that you’re taking a proactive step to optimize every facet of your oral health. These visits give our team the opportunity to clean your teeth and gums, as well as thoroughly examine your mouth to identify early issues and recommend specific treatments.
Are you looking for a good family dentist near Middletown, OH? If so, then we’d love to connect. Contact us today to schedule an appointment or learn more about our practice!
