1.Why does my dental journey begin with the hygienist?

Oral health/dental education must be excellent if you want dental treatment like fillings, crowns, implants, braces etc to be successful. For example if you don’t understand how to look after your implant and your oral hygiene is poor there is a high possibility that the implant will fail.

2.Why do I need to see a hygienist?

Seeing a hygienist regularly whether it be once a year or four times a year or more is essential. Your hygienist will educate you on oral health and disease. Perform basic and extensive gum assessments. Guide and tailor your brushing and interdental cleaning. Help you to stabilize any active disease in your mouth and help you to maintain good oral health.

3.Will the treatment be painful?

No. There are various methods to relieve discomfort if you feel you require it such as anaesthetic sprays and gels. Local anaesthetic can be used as well if it is necessary.

4.What is involved in a hygiene appt?

Discussion initially to identify your needs and to discuss todays treatment. A further discussion about oral health education using visual aids. Full mouth gum assessment and monitoring assessments. Active treatment such as removal of plaque and staining. Some treatments require more extensive plaque removal. A tailored guide to brushing and interdental cleaning with samples to take away.

5.How much will it cost?

Cost will vary depending on the treatment. Prices start from £175 for initial appointments and from £95 for maintenance appointments. A pre-payment deposit is taken prior to booking appointments. You can arrange to be part of the DenPlan Hygiene scheme, paying monthly, reducing overall costs and paying no deposit for treatment. This can be arranged after your initial hygienist appointment.

6.How long are the appts?

Initial appointments are usually 1 hour and 20 minutes and thereafter between 40 -90 minutes but depending on individual needs this may differ.

7.Can you save my loose tooth?

Once you have had your initial visit with the dentist you will have a better idea if your tooth can be saved or not. Teeth can be loose for a number of reasons but the most concerning being from gum disease. Gum disease can often be stabilised with lots of hard work between you and the hygienist but other factors must be considered for example systemic (diabetes) or social factors (smoking) as they can compromise the result ending in tooth loss.

8.Why do you need to know what medication I take?

Some medication can cause certain side effects to your mouth such as dryness, inflammation and bleeding more than normal. Medication can allow us to tailor treatment to your needs so please bring a list of your medication to your appointments and remember to tell us if it changes.