A dental cleaning is a professional cleaning you receive from your dental hygienist and is usually completed in less than 30 minutes. Cleanings should be performed every six months to prevent excessive plaque buildup. Plaque left untreated can lead to unhealthy gums and tooth decay. A routine dental cleaning should include scaling, root planing and polishing.
Scaling and root planing is the process of removing plaque and tartar from all tooth surfaces with a variety of methods, depending on the amount of plaque and tartar. Polishing completes the cleaning, making the surface of the teeth smooth and minimizing future plaque build-up.
"Like a lot of people I don't go to the doctor unless I'm sick, so for the dentist I wasn't doing regular visits and low and behold ended up with cavities. Dr. Tom was super nice and professional, no one in the office made me feel bad about my teeth, they just immediately moved on to the treatment steps. Got my cavities filled and all the jaw pain I had for months was gone by the time the numbing wore off. Super grateful for Dr. Tom and his wonderful staff. Also liked how modern their office was, I didn't realize how old school my old dentist was until I came here - the up to date technology made a big difference."
