What’s a Deep Dental Cleaning and Why Would I Need One?

Gum disease (periodontitis) affects more than 40% of US adults and is the main cause of tooth loss. Fortunately, with the help of a dentist, you can prevent and reverse gum disease and protect your oral health. 

It’s recommended that you visit your dentist for a routine cleaning twice a year. If you’ve skipped your twice-annual checkups and cleanings, you can develop problems like gum disease. When this happens, your dentist may recommend a deep cleaning.

Here at Goodman Dental Center, general and cosmetic dentists Brian Goodman, DDS, and Tanner Goodman, DDS, strive to help the Queen Creek, Arizona, community keep their smiles as healthy and bright as possible. 

Twice-annual checkups give us the opportunity to check for problems before they start and keep your oral health on track. Regular and deep cleanings are part of maintaining your oral health. Here’s a more detailed look at deep cleanings and why you may need one. 

The perils of gum disease

Your teeth are meant to last a lifetime, and yet roughly 178 million Americans are missing at least one tooth. Gum disease often begins subtly: a buildup of bacteria-harboring plaque triggers low-level gum inflammation.

At this early stage of the gum disease process, called gingivitis, routine dental cleanings with us twice a year are usually enough to keep things in check.

If, however, gingivitis is aggressive or goes untreated, it can quickly lead to periodontitis, causing your gums to pull away from your teeth. This causes spaces, or pockets, to form where more damaging bacteria can invade and wreak havoc.

As the gum disease advances, it can damage bone, leading to loose teeth that may eventually fall out.

Deep cleanings: Crucial for managing gum disease

If your gum disease has advanced to periodontitis, as evidenced by pockets that are 4mm deep or greater, we turn to a deep cleaning to thoroughly remove plaque from beneath your gums. 

Also called a scaling and root planing procedure, we first carefully remove the plaque and tartar from your teeth and under your gums where pockets have formed. To accomplish this, we use special ultrasonic instruments or manual tools to thoroughly remove bacteria-harboring matter.

Once we clean your teeth, we perform a preventive procedure that helps ward off future problems with gum disease. We use a scaling instrument to smooth out the planes of your roots to encourage your gums to reattach snugly to your teeth, decreasing deep pockets. 

This prevents bacteria from taking up residence and causing problems. 

When gum disease is severe, we may perform your deep cleaning over two visits. You may experience some minor discomfort afterward, which you can address with over-the-counter medications. Rest assured that your gums heal quickly once the bacteria are removed.

Keeping your teeth healthy

After your successful deep cleaning, we give you instructions for maintaining your dental health. We usually recommend a routine cleaning every three months after a deep cleaning to ensure that your gums heal and bacteria remain at bay.

Good oral hygiene, as in brushing twice daily, flossing, and rinsing, go a long way to keeping your teeth and gums healthy.

Count on the providers at Goodman Dental Center to keep your teeth and gums in tip-top shape. Whether you have gum disease or desire straighter, whiter teeth, we can help. Get started today by giving us a call or booking your appointment online.