703 SIMON AVE, CARROLL, IOWA 51401
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At Carroll Dental Clinic, preventative care is on top of our list for keeping you healthy and addressing deficiencies before they turn into major problems. We take great pride in our commitment to the preservation of our patients’ oral health and natural dentition.
Our patients receive regularly scheduled, thorough oral health exams which help to protect not only their teeth but also the hard and soft oral tissues of the mouth. Our computerized re-care system makes sure you never miss a checkup.
Periodontal screening and evaluations along with routine dental hygiene appointments for teeth cleaning and scaling help to protect against dental decay and periodontal (gum) disease which can impact your general oral health, lead to the loss of teeth and even affect your overall physical health.
We also provide protective sealants which safeguard not only the health of children’s teeth but also benefit the preservation of adult teeth. To learn more about sealants, click here.
We don’t just do regular checkups because we like visiting with you (although that is our favorite part!). The American Dental Association recommends you see your dentist at least twice a year for a checkup, in order to catch any minor concerns before they turn into big problems. We also help prevent issues in the first place by providing cleaning and prevention services while you are in our chair.
When you visit us for your regular checkup, we will inspect your soft tissues for any signs of periodontal disease, oral cancer or other problems. We will also inspect tooth-by-tooth to screen for problems like tooth decay or cracks. We’ll also inspect any old dental work to ensure its health. If needed, we will gladly replace any worn out dental work such as metal fillings, inlays, onlays, or crowns with the most modern solutions.By actively inspecting your mouth, we can greatly reduce your potential for large dental problems. For example, a small cavity, if left untreated, can expand to destroy an entire tooth and even spread to nearby teeth. Cracked teeth can be painful, but a bigger problem can occur if they are left untreated and pieces break off. It’s also important to be screened for advanced gum disease, as it is the primary cause of tooth loss for American adults. When we screen for oral cancer, we are helping patients avoid becoming a statistic—around 7,500 deaths each year are caused by oral cancer. Caught and treated early, these diseases can be controlled.
How long has it been since your last checkup? Call us today—we’d love to see you!
Believe it or not, we really don’t want to find any problems in your mouth! It’s a lot better for us to have healthy patients out in the world acting as testaments to our great work. And for you to stay in optimal health, it’s going to take both of us working together. Here are some things we can do to help you out, and some things you need to be doing at home in order to keep your smile in top notch shape!
Sealants: Dental sealants act as a barrier, protecting the teeth against decay-causing bacteria. The sealants are usually applied to the chewing surfaces of the back teeth (premolars and molars) where decay occurs most often.
Fluoride: At Carroll Dental Clinic, we apply fluoride varnish to your teeth after each checkup and cleaning. Fluoride is absorbed easily into tooth enamel, especially in children’s growing teeth. Once teeth are developed, fluoride makes the entire tooth structure more resistant to decay and promotes remineralization, which aids in repairing early decay before the damage is even visible.
Flossing: Some people loop. Some people spool. Others simply refuse. The verdict is in: Flossing is one of the best things you can ever do to take care of your teeth.
“Flossing every 24 hours to break up plaque is imperative for good oral health,” says Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) spokesperson Gordon Isbell, DMD, MAGD.
An article in the October 2005 issue of AGD Impact, AGD’s monthly newsmagazine, describes how floss is the single most important factor in preventing periodontal (gum) disease, which affects more than 50 percent of adults.
Flossing, which is just as important as brushing, helps removes the plaque and debris that stick to teeth and gums between the teeth. It also helps polish the tooth’s surface and control bad breath.
Dental floss can be waxed or unwaxed, flavored and unflavored, wide and regular. All floss helps clean and remove plaque. Wider floss, also known as dental tape, may help people with a lot of bridge work and is usually recommended when the spaces between teeth are wide. Waxed floss can be easier to slide between teeth with very little space between. Unwaxed floss makes a squeaking sound, which lets the user know their teeth are clean.
Electric flossers are now on the scene, but most dentists contend there is no substitute for manually flossing one’s teeth. “Electric flossing is no substitute, but if someone has a disability and can’t manually floss, it is better than nothing,” says Dr. Isbell.
Similarly, dentists say that waterpicks should not be used as a substitute for brushing and flossing because they don’t remove plaque. Dentists do recommend waterpicks for people with braces or dentures or those with gum disease who have trouble flossing because of pain.
Benefits of flossing:
Brushing: Brush your teeth twice a day with an ADA-accepted fluoride toothpaste. Replace your toothbrush every three or four months, or sooner if the bristles are frayed. A worn toothbrush won’t do a good job of cleaning your teeth.
Be sure to brush for 3 to 4 minutes each time. Despite the variety and advancements in toothbrushes today, people don’t brush long enough to get the best results, reports the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD).
“Since many people brush during the morning or at night with the radio on, I tell my patients to brush for one song,” says Luke Matranga, DDS, past president of the AGD. “That’s about three minutes – the right amount of time to get the best results from brushing.”
“People will swear that they’ve brushed three to four minutes, but the average person brushes for less than a minute. This is not long enough to reach all areas of the mouth and scrub off cavity-causing bacteria,” says Dr. Matranga.
