• Soft tissue & Gum screening

The hygienist and dentist evaluate your gums in order to prevent and in some case treat periodontal disease.  Periodontal disease is the main cause of tooth loss in adults. 

Signs and symptoms:

1. Bleeding gums when brushing and flossing
2. Bad breath
3. Loose or shaking permanent teeth

• Cleaning and polishing

The hygienist takes care of cleaning and polishing your teeth.   The cleaning or scaling process consist of the removal of plaque (soft) and calculus (tartar or hard) deposits from the surfaces of the teeth above and below the gum line.

The polishing of teeth is accomplished with a brush or air pressure machine, to remove stain (coffee, tea, tobacco) from the outside surface of your teeth.

• Fluoride treatments

Fluoride increases tooth resistance to decay (cavity formation).  It helps make the tooth surfaces harder and prevent cavities by slowing the breakdown of enamel and speeding up the remineralization process.

• Pit and Fissure Sealants

As a preventive measure, sealants consist of bonding a plastic resin within the natural grooves of your posterior teeth to prevent tooth decay.  They are usually applied to the teeth at a young age, but can also be placed for adults.

• Preventive restorations

Similar to sealants, preventive restorations are tooth colored fillings applied to permanent teeth that have decayed slightly requiring minimal removal of tooth structure to place the restoration (filling).