5 Ways a General Dentist Can Help Protect Your Smile

General dentists protect the integrity of your oral health by providing preventative and corrective services. These can range from cleanings to repairing damaged teeth. Here are five ways the dentist can protect your smile for years to come.

1. Examinations

Examinations are one of the most common and necessary preventative measures general dentists recommend and perform. These appointments allow them to see and provide early intervention for conditions threatening the patient's oral health. Common conditions the general dentist detects are:

• Decay
• Dry mouth
• Gum disease
• Halitosis
• Developing lesions or sores
• Infections
• Signs of oral cancer

Examinations involve the general dentist and their team performing visual assessment with the help of various tools, X-rays, and comprehensive cleanings. After the dentist gathers enough information from each process step, they can provide effective tips to improve the patient's oral health. These recommendations may include oral care products, updated care routines, and additional preventative services.

2. Dental sealants

Another preventative service general dentists commonly perform is dental sealants. Dental sealants can help children and teens who need to be more thorough in their everyday dental hygiene habits to protect their teeth. However, this treatment is equally as helpful for adults with sensitive back molars or who are prone to decay.

The process is simple and quick, requiring the general dentist to paint the sealant material on the back molars or back teeth. The material hardens quickly over the natural grooves, helping food debris to slide off instead of becoming stuck in the future.

3. Fluoride treatments

Like dental sealants, general dentists can use fluoride treatments on adolescents and adults. Fluoride is a natural mineral found in the U.S. food and water supply. It also acts as a natural defense to decay. Over the years, many oral care companies have noticed its power and added it to their products, such as toothpaste and mouthwash. Still, they only infuse small quantities into the products and are not as proficient as a fluoride treatment at the dentist's office. After a comprehensive cleaning, general dentists can provide highly concentrated fluoride through gels, foams, or varnishes to strengthen the teeth. Patients can then maintain the results through thorough cleanings and balanced diets.

4. Fillings

Sometimes, corrective measures are necessary to restore the patient's oral health. One of the most common is a dental filling. General dentists use fillings to repair holes left behind from small cavities. They are comprised of composite or porcelain material, both tooth-colored, that literally fills the space after removing all traces of decay. Fillings restore the look and function of the tooth while protecting the inner structures, preventing damage and decay from reoccurring in the area.

5. Crowns

Dental crowns are another common corrective service general dentists provide. They are custom, composite, or porcelain caps that completely engulf a tooth damaged by trauma or decay. Once the dentist removes the initial threat and brittle structure from the tooth, they will acquire a mold of the tooth and surrounding teeth before sending the information to an offsite lab. There, the team creates a custom permanent crown that looks like the patient's natural tooth and ships it back to the dentist's office, where the general dentist will bond it into place.