Good oral hygiene starts at home with proper brushing and flossing, but even with good home care, plaque and tartar will build up and harm your teeth and gums. Regular dental exams and teeth cleanings are a vital part of our preventative dental care services at Dexter Family Dentistry. Our compassionate dentists are dedicated to protecting the oral health of you and your entire family with professional cleanings at our comfortable, stress-free dental office in Dexter, Michigan.

Why Get Adult Cleanings

The Academy of General Dentistry recommends teeth cleaning at least twice each year to decrease the risk of cavities, gum disease, tooth decay, and other serious oral health issues. This recommendation is true for most of our patients, however, if you suffer from gum or periodontal disease or are at a higher risk of developing periodontitis, you will likely need cleanings more frequently. Adult cleanings help prevent the buildup of plaque, which contains bacteria that potentially damage the gums. Professional dental cleanings help prevent gum disease and tooth loss by removing plaque and tartar.

Adult Teeth Cleaning Process

Dental cleanings are also known as oral prophylaxis, and they’re an important part of your routine dental checkups. Because each person’s teeth are a little different, we customize your cleanings and entire dental care to fit your unique needs. We begin with an exam to evaluate your overall oral health and determine whether you have any signs of gingivitis or other potential problems that require special attention.

Teeth cleanings are generally performed by one of our highly trained dental hygienists. We may begin by using specialized instruments to gently loosen and remove large pieces of tartar and plaque from your teeth. These pieces are washed away with water; then we use hand tools called curettes to gently clean smaller deposits from the teeth.

Next, we use a rotary brush with a soft rubber tip with toothpaste to thoroughly clean, polish, and smooth the surfaces of your teeth. You’ll finish up by rinsing out any residual debris or toothpaste with a liquid enhanced with an antimicrobial rinse. While you may feel apprehensive about cleanings, it’s a simple, relatively painless process that leaves your teeth feeling thoroughly cleansed.

Deep Teeth Cleaning

When your gums become inflamed by plaque due to poor oral hygiene, your gums pull away from your teeth leaving spaces that trap plaque below the gum line. You can’t remove plaque inside these pockets with regular tooth brushing. If left untreated, it can lead to gum disease, and you could suffer from tooth and bone loss.

If you suffer from gum disease or periodontitis, we generally recommend more frequent teeth cleanings. You may even need a deeper cleaning process called scaling and root planing. Scaling removes tartar and plaque from below the gum line, and root planing smooths the root of the tooth to help gums reattach to the tooth.

Deep cleaning is more intene than standard cleaning and may require more than one visit to complete. To ensure your comfort, we generally recommend local anesthetic for deep cleanings. Following deep cleanings, it is normal to have increased temperature sensitivity, however, this will resolve as the gums heal.

We Help You Keep Your Teeth Healthy

The doctors and staff of dental professionals at Dexter Family Dentistry believe in treating every patient as if they are part of our own families. We strive to provide a stress-free, comfortable environment to encourage every patient, young and old, to pursue good oral health. We happily demonstrate proper brushing and flossing techniques and provide comprehensive oral home-care instructions to help you keep your teeth and gums clean and healthy between visits. Contact us at (734) 426-9000 to schedule a professional dental exam and cleaning today.