GENERAL DENTISTRY

You are probably familiar with the ubiquitous question you hear when you first sit down on the chair in the surgery: 'how may we help you today?' Whether you are here for a routine check-up or presenting with a specific problem, the most important aspect that will determine your future treatment is what your needs and expectations are. Hence, we take the time to listen to you to tell us about the history of your problems, if you have any, what you would like us to do for you and what outcome you expect from your treatment.

Following our initial discussion about your reasons for being here, we proceed to undertake a thorough examination. Your dentition is not an isolated entity from the rest of the body but is an integral part of it, meaning that problems in the oral cavity may give rise to problems somewhere else in the body and vice versa. To site a couple of examples here, an unattractive smile may severely hinder your self confidence and place limitations on your ability to advance your career or a particular relationship, or certain bacteria in your mouth, especially if you have gum disease, may actually be extremely harmful and even life threatening if they manage to settle on your heart valves that have been compromised by rheumatic fever in your childhood. Hence we make sure that we are very thorough with the examination and look at the overall picture and not just focus on your teeth.

How often should we have a dental check-up? Our recommendation for the majority of our patients is every 6 months. Because most people today are reasonably aware of the importance of oral hygiene, the most common dental diseases such as gingivitis and tooth decay tend to evolve slower and we can expect that check-ups at 6 monthly intervals will intercept and arrest any diseases before they have a chance to cause more serious problems. In some individuals, such as those debilitated by certain medical conditions, more frequent checkups may be needed.

In addition to direct observation, we make use of dental x-rays which allow us to examine areas that we do not have direct visual access to, such as between your back teeth or below the gums. We recommend that, as a routine, you have your back teeth x-rayed at least every 2 years to ensure there is no new decay between your teeth. Without these X-rays we cannot reassure you that everything is fine and you are at risk of more serious problems developing. Occasionally, we may also use a laser device, called a Kavo DiagnoDent, to diagnose hard to see decay such as in the depth of deep grooves or fissures on the chewing surfaces of your back teeth. For those who are technically minded, the laser identifies decay on the basis that the wavelength of light reflected by a decayed tooth structure is different to that reflected by healthy tooth structure.

For cosmetic consultations we look at a number of very specific aspects of your smile, including such technical parameters as the size of your teeth, the golden proportion, your smile line, angulation and shape of your teeth, the incisal outline, gingival symmetry, aesthetic line, labial contour, teeth shade and many others. We also tend to make use of study models which require us to take impressions of your teeth and we may also take clinical photographs as well.

For implant treatment some additional factors we look at, besides your general and oral health, are available spaces, the quantity and quality of bone, as well as aesthetic considerations. Again, we need study models of your teeth, as well as panoramic and intra oral radiographs of your teeth and jaws and sometimes we may order a CT scan.