Preventive dentistry is the modern way of reducing the amount of dental treatment necessary to maintain a healthy mouth. It helps you to keep your teeth. The two major causes of tooth loss are decay and gum disease. The better we prevent or deal with these two problems, the more chance people have of keeping their teeth for life. The joint efforts of our dentists, our hygienist and yourself, can help to prevent the need for treatment, and so avoid the traditional pattern of fillings and extractions. A course of treatment may be recommended to get your mouth into good condition, and a maintenance plan will be worked out to help you keep it that way.

With modern dentistry and constant new developments, it is possible to prevent or considerably reduce dental disease. Preventive dentistry will benefit anyone with some of their own teeth. People who don’t have any teeth can also benefit because conditions such as mouth cancer and denture stomatitis can be identified and treated during regular visits to us. It is excellent for children and young people, and it is never too late to start.

We will first assess your teeth and gums, and discuss with you any treatment that is necessary. The main aim is to help you get your mouth really healthy, to try and prevent any dental problems returning. In a healthy mouth it is unlikely that decay or gum disease will continue to be a problem. · Our hygienist will thoroughly ‘scale and polish’ your teeth. · Our  hygienist will show you the best methods of brushing and flossing to remove the bacterial ‘plaque’ which forms constantly on your teeth and gums. Plaque is an invisible film of bacteria that forms constantly on the teeth and gums. When you eat or drink something sugary, the plaque turns the sugar into acid, which will cause tooth decay. Plaque will also cause gum inflammation if it is not regularly and thoroughly removed. The hard tartar (calculus) which builds up on the teeth also starts off as plaque. · You will be advised which oral care products are the best ones for you to use. · Our hygienist will discuss diet and any habits such as smoking and drinking with you if required. · We will also make sure that all your fillings are in good repair and there are no rough edges to make cleaning difficult.

Our approach as ‘preventive dentists’ will mean we often recommend treatment to reinforce a tooth to make sure that it does not break. For example, if our dentist sees that a tooth is cracked, or is weak and in danger of breaking, they may advise a new filling or perhaps a crown or ‘onlay’ to protect it. This is always better than waiting till the breakage happens, and then working out how best to deal with it, perhaps as an emergency.

Our preventive efforts are primarily focused on the prevention of two diseases, tooth decay (cavities) and periodontal (gum) disease.

• Preventive Treatment for Tooth Decay
  
  
  • Hygiene - A significant benefit of our hygiene efforts and home care recommendations is that our patients' teeth remain clean and thereby protected from tooth decay.
  
  
  
  • Sealants and Air Abrasion - These minimally-invasive procedures clean and seal the deep pits and grooves on the biting surfaces of our teeth. By sealing off these sites that are vulnerable to decay, the potential for large cavities is minimized. This is a very gentle procedure, typically no anaesthetic is required.
  
  
  
  • Diagnosis - An important part of our services is the early detection and correction of tooth decay. We prefer to take care of problems when they are small and simple.
  
  
  
  • Age-wear - We do find that teeth, like everything else, gradually break down from continued usage. Fortunately we have excellent restorative techniques to reconstruct teeth that are damaged by wear.
  
  
  
• Preventive Treatment for Periodontal Disease
  
  
  • Hygiene  - Disease is preventable and much of our hygiene efforts are directed towards achieving and maintaining healthy gums. At Sheen Dental, we are very proud of the success we have had with our periodontal therapy program. Patients often comment that they have never been so well taken care of.
  
  
  
  • Irrigation - This is a service we provide that places a strong antibacterial agent (chlorhexidene) right into the gum pockets of the teeth. This procedure helps eliminate infection within the gums that leads to periodontal breakdown. This solution is also offered as a take home rinse.
  
  
  
  • Maintenance - With restorative dentistry, when we fix a tooth it stays fixed for a long time. With periodontal therapy we must continually have hygiene maintenance visits to keep periodontal disease from recurring. Bacteria grows back and the gums can become re-infected. Maintenance visits are all about minimizing bacterial infection and achieving a fresh start.
  
  
  
  • Co-Therapy - To successfully control periodontal disease requires the effort of both our dental office and our patients themselves. The foundation of success is effective home care therapy. Our office puts a strong effort into improving and maintaining an effective home care program. We know that without this, all our best efforts will fail. Co-therapy defines this dual responsibility of treatment. Working together we can achieve tremendous success in the treatment and prevention of periodontal disease.