Preventive Dentistry
Just like you would visit your primary physician each year for physical and general health exams, so should you visit your East Keilor dentist routinely for preventive teeth cleans and exams.
Preventive dentistry allows us to help you achieve and maintain a healthy smile, excellent oral health, and optimal overall health and well-being. When you put forth the effort to have a healthy smile, a beautiful one often follows, and our team can help.
What Is Preventive Dentistry?
Preventive dentistry is really a focus on keeping your teeth and mouth clean and bacteria-free to promote excellent oral health and a healthy smile. You can do this at home when you’re diligent about your home care routine with daily brushing and flossing.
You can also do this by committing to regular visits with your dentist in East Keilor, who will clean your teeth and monitor your dental health with an exam to protect you from everyday problems like gum disease, tooth decay, oral cancer, and cavities.
Detecting Oral Cancer
Oral cancer can be a silent killer that is hard to detect on your own. During every preventive exam, our dentists will screen you for oral cancer, which has the best prognosis the earlier we can spot and treat it.
Oral cancer can be hard to detect or diagnose independently because it doesn’t initially cause much pain or discomfort. Some early signs of oral cancer might be:
- A white or red patch or lesion on your cheeks or soft tissues
- Pain or difficulty when swallowing
- An earache or pain
- A lump inside your mouth or neck
- A sore or lesion in your mouth that doesn’t heal within 14 days
If you notice any of these signs or experience other changes in your oral health, please contact your dentist in East Keilor for an exam.
Additional Preventive Services
Treatment for TMJ
When your dentist regularly screens you for problems like tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease, we can also look for issues with your temporomandibular joint (TMJ) or jaw joint.
If your TMJ isn’t functioning correctly, it can cause problems like:
- Neck and shoulder pain
- Frequent headaches and migraines
- Popping or clicking of the jaw joint
- Jaw locking open or closed
- Pain or tenderness when chewing
When you experience uncomfortable symptoms with your jaw joint, it can develop into a painful disorder called temporomandibular disorder (TMD).
Our dentists can help you identify TMD and treat it appropriately. Treatment depends on the cause of your TMD but can sometimes include a custom oral appliance that protects your teeth from the damage caused by clenching and grinding them (bruxism), contributing to TMD.
We’ll work closely with you to determine the best treatment so you don’t have to endure the discomfort caused by TMD.
