What Are the Benefits of Preventive Dentistry?
Preventive dentistry is underrated in dental care, even though its primary role is crucial for excellence in oral health. Many patients determine in their minds that dental care is only an option for treating oral illnesses and conditions. While there is a provision for that, preventive dentistry is much better.
It emphasizes the need for regular dental checkups and getting through different oral treatments that help you excel in your oral health.
What Is Preventive Dentistry?
It is a specialty of dentistry anchored on preserving the oral health of patients by enforcing different preventive measures. The specialty deals with treatments and procedures that help create a healthy environment in the mouths of patients, eliminating the need for future curative measures.
Many of the treatments and procedures in preventive dentistry are not offered on a need basis, but rather or matters proactivity. Some of the common such procedures include:
- Regular dental exams and routine scans
- Professional deep cleans, root planing, and scaling
- Fluoride treatments
- Dental sealants
- Space maintainers
- Nutritional counseling and Supplementation
- Preventive dental fillings
Benefits of Preventive Dental Care
If you are looking for compelling reasons to help you make the first step of visiting your dentist in Roanoke, VA, here are some of the benefits of preventive dentistry:
- Boosts oral hygiene – it is primarily a key concept at Kids First Dental, to help children excel in oral health. The preventive measures taken in dental facilities help maintain a healthy mouth. If anything, procedures like professional dental cleaning sessions give you a boost every couple of months.
- Helps prevent infections – regularly visiting your dentist translates to routine dental exams. These exams are used to evaluate the state of your oral cavity at all times. This way, your dentist can ensure you do not have any infection in your mouth. Further, some dental procedures in preventive dental care, like root teeth cleaning, are used to create a healthy environment in your mouth, making it unconducive for bacteria to cause infection. Summed up, preventive dentistry helps lower the risk of catching infections that can lead to dental decay, gum disease, abscessed teeth, among other serious oral conditions.
- Reduces the need for restorative dental care – preventive dentistry is founded on the concept of proactivity. It is proactivity that allows a CDC dentist to cover your dental care so that you do not require future restorative procedures. For example, by using fluoride treatment to strengthen teeth, you may not need to have your teeth extracted because of dental decay.
- Detecting and correcting present dental problems – people do not remember that preventive dentistry can also be used in a restorative way. Ideally, preventive resin restoration falls under preventive oral care, where a dentist restores the structure of your smile in the early stages. The goal is to prevent future damages and complications in your oral health that is likely when a dental problem is left untreated. Besides, in health care, the earlier you catch and treat issues, the better the outcome.
- Detecting and treating sleeping problems – did you know that a dentist can do more than just fix things that are wrong with your mouth? A sleep disorder called sleep apnea can be detected, diagnosed, and even treated in dentistry. However, this is only possible if you are one to visit your dentist regularly.
- Boosting self-confidence – nothing feels and looks better than confidence. When you are assured of excellent oral health, it exudes a new level of confidence. You smile better and interact with your peers with newly found confidence and sophistication.
- Prevents tooth loss – one of the most common dental issues faced by people is tooth loss. While teeth are built to last a lifetime, it is hardly the case for many people. Losing teeth can be as a result of a damaging infection, an accident, or a dental treatment. Measures taken in preventive dentistry are there to help combat the causes that are because of infections and dental treatments. Your dentist may never have to suggest tooth removal as a treatment since you have properly cared for your teeth through preventive oral care. On the other hand, without an infection to damage your teeth, there may never be a reason for you to even seek such treatments as those.