Wouldn’t you want to avoid experiencing any oral health problems if you could? At Healthy Smiles Dental Care, our team wants to prevent you from needing invasive treatments due to progressing issues, which is why we focus our efforts on preventive dentistry. With our routine oral cancer screenings, fluoride treatments, thorough routine checkups, and other preventive dentistry in Flint, MI, we aim to close the door on lingering cavities and gum disease symptoms and stop them in their tracks. That way, you can always enjoy a healthy smile for as long as you continue visiting us.
The American Dental Association recommends visiting a dentist near you every six months for routine checkups and cleanings to keep your teeth and gums healthy. During these appointments, our team will capture X-rays of your mouth and conduct a visual inspection of your teeth and gums to make sure that we don’t spot any early signs of common oral health problems. If we do, we’ll develop a treatment plan. Before you leave, we’ll thoroughly scale, polish, and floss your teeth.
At each of your semi-annual checkups and cleanings, we’ll also conduct an oral cancer screening using our intraoral camera. During this examination, we’ll be looking for any early signs of the disease, such as oral wounds that won’t seem to heal or red and white patches on the inside of your mouth. If we do spot anything, we’ll act quickly and refer you for a biopsy and additional testing. Our goal is to make sure that we spot this disease in its earliest stages to increase the chances of successful treatment.
Do you wake up with a dull and thumping headache or sore jaw? These signs may indicate that you have a common condition called bruxism, where you grind and clench your teeth as you sleep. When left unaddressed, it can put you at a higher risk of breaking, chipping, and severely damaging one of your teeth due to the constant force and pressure you’re putting on them. That’s why we offer customized nightguards that cushion your mouth and facial muscles, protecting them from injury.
Fluoride is a naturally-occurring mineral that can be found in several fresh fruits and vegetables as well as oral hygiene products and even local water sources. Your teeth need it to fortify their outer protective layer, called the enamel, from cavities and the effects of harmful oral bacteria. If you’re not getting enough of it, we may suggest a fast and easy fluoride treatment. All we do is place a topical, fluoridated gel on your teeth and wipe it off!
Do you feel overwhelmed when you walk through an oral hygiene aisle at your local department store because you’re unsure of what products are the best for your oral health? There are hundreds of different brands of toothpaste and mouthwash available to you, but how do you know which one will keep cavities away? Our team at Healthy Smiles Dental Care wants to make your job a little easier by recommending all ADA-approved Crest and Oral-B-brand products.