Houston, TX Preventative Dentistry
By visiting Griffith Dental Associates in Houston, TX every six months for routine cleanings and exams, you allow us the ability to better monitor any health issues that you may currently have or that could be brewing. Through dental cleanings and exams, we can also detect jaw misalignment and poor hygiene or nutrition. The sooner we can detect an issue, the easier it is to treat. Keeping up with your routine appointments help keep your teeth and gums healthy and help prevent oral health issues from developing.
Preventative Dentistry Services
Preventive dentistry services we offer in our Houston, TX dental office range from the most basic treatments that have been used successfully for decades, to recent technological innovations.
Some of the services we offer at Griffith Dental Associates include:
- Teeth Cleanings. This is where dental health starts. There's just no substitute for physically removing disease-causing dental plaque and calculus (tartar) from your teeth — especially in hard-to-reach areas near the gum line. That's why regular professional cleanings are so important to your health.
- Dental Sealants. These invisible plastic coatings fill the tiny grooves in back teeth so they do not become havens for bacteria. They prevent cavities from forming and the need for fillings later on.
- Fluoride. This mineral is readily incorporated into the teeth's mineral structure, thereby making them stronger and more decay-resistant. Fluoride can even reverse tiny cavities that are starting to form. If you are not getting enough from your toothpaste and drinking water, it can be applied directly to your teeth at the dental office.
- Laser Decay Diagnosis. Laser light can be used to detect early tooth decay quickly and easily, right in the dental office — before full-blown cavities form.
- Mouthguards. Athletic mouthguards are designed to absorb and distribute the forces of impact and minimize traumatic injury to both the hard and soft tissues of the mouth. In fact, an athlete is 60 times more likely to suffer harm to teeth when not wearing a mouthguard. The best ones are custom-made for you by your dentist.
- Oral Cancer Screenings. Your best chance of surviving oral cancer — a disease that affects not only lifelong smokers but also young non-smokers — is early detection and treatment. Oral cancer screenings are a routine part of every regular dental exam.
- Salivary Diagnostics. This is an exciting new development in the field of preventive dentistry. While it is in its infancy, it is already possible to detect the presence of certain diseases with a salvia test, and the technology is developing rapidly.
- X-Rays. For around a century, dentists have been using x-rays to reveal signs of disease not visible to the naked eye. Now, with CAT scans, they have become three-dimensional and are an indispensable tool to diagnose tooth decay, gum disease, bone density, bone volume and tumors.
Your Role in Preventing Dental Disease
There's one more extremely important component of preventive dentistry: you. The procedures mentioned above can only be effective if you come in to the dental office to take advantage of them. Likewise, the importance of maintaining a good oral hygiene routine at home cannot be overstated. Daily effective brushing and flossing will go a long way toward removing the dental plaque responsible for dental disease, tooth loss, and the need for more complex dental treatment.
If you start to experience any
problems, like bleeding gums, chronic bad breath or tooth pain, it’s
important that you see us right away so that we can provide the
proper care to preserve and protect your beautiful smile for the rest
of your life. Preventive dentistry and good oral hygiene are your
ticket to a healthy, clean smile.
To learn more about preventative dentistry or to schedule your next dental appointment, call Griffith Dental Associates in Houston, TX today at (713) 523-1666.
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