Hygiene Maintenance
Maintenance of healthy teeth, gums and fresh breath is simple if it is done regularly by using good home techniques and on average, six monthly visits to Al Tabeeb Dental Centre. We can then identify any changes to your teeth or gums and pick up any potential concerns before they have a chance to develop.
Our holistic approach is designed to thoroughly analyze all the aspects of your dental health and well being. Your hygiene maintenance appointments combined with our comprehensive examination covers a wide range of areas. This includes the monitoring of many conditions such as gum recession, hairline cracks in your teeth, dietary habits, jaw joint imbalances and oral cancer screening.
Tooth Brushing
- Brush at least twice a day for 2-3 minutes with fluoride toothpaste .
- Brush with a small soft tooth brush using a circular action to the gum level as this is where most plaque builds up.
- For best results use an electric toothbrush such as Braun-Oral B electric tooth brushes with extra soft tooth brush heads.
- Avoid scrubbing back and forth as this can cause gum recession or tooth wear.
- Move along one tooth at a time with the brush head angled down to the gum line to ensure nowhere is missed.
- Change your tooth brush around every 3 months or when the bristles start to splay, whichever comes first. If the bristles are splaying much sooner you need to use a more gentle action.
Flossing And Cleaning Between Teeth
Daily dental flossing at a time that suits you best is recommended as brushing alone does not clean effectively around all the surfaces of your teeth.
If the gum bleeds when you floss or brush don’t let this put you off. Gums often bleed from areas that are inflamed. These areas will require more attention than normal to heal up, not less! AlTabeeb Dental can supply you with many specialized flossing aids such as Periotape, Super Floss, inter-dental brushes and Oxyjet.
Flossing technique:
Step 1: Wind floss around your middle fingers to keep it taut. Then place the floss over the tips of your first fingers to reach your back teeth.
Step 2: It is easier to floss your top front teeth by placing it over the tip of one finger and one thumb
Step 3: Ease the floss between your teeth with a gentle sawing action and then clean with an up and down movement.
Mouthwashes And Specialized Gels
Few people have such a thorough brushing and flossing routine that they would not benefit from the use of mouthwash and or specialized gels. An excellent daily mouthwash can help eliminate food debris and bacteria that has not all been removed by brushing and flossing and can be very effective at combating bad breath and decay. We can also explain about mouthwashes and specialized gels that are particularly helpful in preventing decay in those prone to ongoing problems or in treating gum disease.
Fresh Breath
AlTabeeb Dental understands how important it is to have fresh breath. Although a mouth rinse or mint may seem like a solution to overcome bad breath, these methods may just be masking a potentially more complex or serious issue.
We can help you enhance the freshness of your breath and take away the embarrassment bad breath (halitosis) often causes. With our targeted treatment approach to healthy, fresh breath you can breathe confidently in any social situation.
Al Tabeeb Dental has helped thousands of patients over the years combat many bad breath concerns with a plan customised to your specific needs.
The causes of bad breath is quite broad as there is often multiple reasons. Our analysis involves discussion of dietary habits, medications, medical problems (e.g sinus, bronchitis), dry mouth (xerostomia) and habits such as smoking. We will also help you with any oral hygiene concerns that may cause bad breath.
Our fresh breath analysis also includes checking for bacterial plaque, tartar, proteins, decay, gum disease, draining abscesses, tongue hygiene or loose dental work (e.g fillings, veneers, crowns, implants or dentures).
Once all your specific bad breath concerns are fully analysed and targeted, AlTabeeb Dental will tailor a unique plan especially for you. The fresh breath treatment plan is especially designed to get to the actual source of your bad breath issues. This may involve specific treatments or specialised products to get your breath fresh and healthy without any more cover-ups!
Gum Disease
Although gum disease is a very common condition, many people have early gum disease and have absolutely no idea.
Gum disease is also known as gingivitis and periodontitis (periodontal disease) and is often closely linked to our general health and well-being.
AlTabeeb dental is absolutely committed to looking after your gums just as much as the teeth themselves. We pride ourselves in preventing or detecting gum disease in its early stages so that it can be effectively treated.
The gums and jaw bone that surrounds your teeth is the primary support your teeth require to remain healthy and firmly in place. Advanced gum disease can weaken this support leading to loose teeth or worse still, tooth loss.
AlTabeeb Dental Centre is passionate about keeping your gums healthy since they form the foundation of long lasting healthy teeth. As the gums also frame your teeth, they are also essential for a beautiful smile!
What Causes Gum Disease?
Gum disease is caused by plaque, a thick and sticky film containing bacteria that builds up on the teeth. Some of the plaque can harden to become tartar, known also as calculus. The plaque and tartar causes inflammation and infection of the gums that can make them red, swollen, tender painful or bleed easily.
In the early stages gum disease is known as gingivitis. If the gingivitis advances it then becomes a more serious condition called periodontitis (periodontal disease). Bacteria below the gum-line is the primary cause of periodontitis. The bacteria produce toxins that often causes the bone surrounding your teeth to dissolve away. Signs of periodontitis are not always obvious but may include bleeding gums, gum recession, gaps appearing between the teeth, abscesses, loose teeth, drifting teeth or bad breath/taste.
How Is Gum Disease Detected?
We carefully examine your medical history, teeth and gums and note if any plaque or tartar is present. Digital X-rays can show if the bone is falling away from the teeth. Fillings are also checked to ensure they are smooth, well shaped and not loose as they can cause plaque and tartar accumulation. The size, shape appearance and texture of the gum is checked as this can indicate gum disease. The gums may need to be measured with a periodontal probe to identify areas of bleeding, gum recession and depth of pockets between the tooth and gum.
Our caring and informative Al Tabeeb Dental Centre dentists carefully check your gums for signs of gum disease. We are meticulous when it comes to professional removal (scale and clean or root planning) of any plaque and tartar (hardened plaque) as this is the primary method to treat and prevent gum disease.
We thoroughly assess other factors that often link with gum disease such as medical conditions (e.g. diabetes, heart disease), medications, dietary habits, smoking and oral hygiene.
Oral Cancer Screening
At AlTabeeb Dental Centre we are absolutely committed to screening for oral cancer since early detection of oral cancer could save your life!
Oral Cancer is one of the least understood diseases in our society yet, each day around three persons are being diagnosed with it.
One of the biggest issues about oral cancer is that it can affect anyone as there are a number of causes that are not well understood. Even though smoking is the main cause of oral cancer, over 25% of oral cancer sufferers have never smoked!
In its early stages oral cancer may appear to be a harmless looking ulcer. Al Tabeeb Dental Centre understands that early detection of oral cancer is essential, as you then have around a 90% chance of surviving.
What Are The Common Signs And Symptoms Of Oral Cancer?
- Red or white patches inside your mouth
- An ulcer, sore or blood blister that does not heal and/or bleeds easily
- A lump, spot or roughened/crusted area that may or may not be painful
- A numb area anywhere in your mouth
- Tenderness or mouth pain
- Changes in your bite or the way your teeth fit together
- Pain or difficulty when chewing, swallowing or moving your tongue or jaw
- Changes in your speech such as hoarseness
- Altered taste
- Loose teeth and/or sore gums
- Swollen glands
What Are The Risk Factors For Oral Cancer?
By eliminating as many of the risk factors listed below and having your lips and mouth regularly checked at AlTabeeb Dental Centre you can help prevent oral cancer. Risk factors include:
- Smoking
- Chewing tobacco
- Heavy alcohol consumption
- Too much sun exposure including sun tanning beds
- Sexually transmitted disease – Human Papilloma Virus (HPV-16)
- Diet low in fruit and vegetables
- Prior radiation treatment (radiotherapy)
- Exposure to some chemicals such as asbestos, sulphuric acid or formaldehyde
- Regular chewing of betel nuts (popular in some parts of south east Asia)
- GORD (gastro-oesophageal reflux disease)
AlTabeeb Dental Centre will conduct a painless, non-invasive oral cancer screening to check for any abnormalities in your entire mouth, not just your teeth. Our oral cancer screening will check for any changes inside your mouth even if there is no pain, and review your dental X-rays for anything unusual. Regular dental check ups is essential to monitor not only your teeth and gums but also all other areas of your lips and mouth including below your tongue.
If you have red or white patches, swelling, spots, sores, ulcers or lumps in your mouth or lip that do not heal, or mouth tenderness, pain or numbness do not hesitate to call or contact us to have you examine.
Bleeding Gums
Although some people consider bleeding gums to be usual, bleeding gums is actually an indicator of an underlying dental or medical problem and should not be ignored.
Bleeding gums can be caused by incorrect brushing or flossing or an accumulation of plaque or tartar (hardened plaque) made up of bacteria. This bacteria causes inflammation, infection, bleeding and swelling of the gums (gingivitis). If the bacteria infects deeper below the gum line, more serious problems can occur that could cause space between teeth or worst still, tooth loss. (periodontitis)
Bleeding gums can also be related to hormonal changes during pregnancy or even a sign of a serious medical condition. This can affect your general health and well being. These medical conditions could be diseases such as bleeding disorders, vitamin K deficiency or leukemia. Bleeding gums may also be linked to an increased risk of heart disease due to mouth bacteria entering the blood and causing clots leading to heart attacks.
At AlTabeeb Dental our service, knowledge and diagnostic methods are used to help determine why your gums are bleeding. We can then advise you about appropriate dental treatments and what action you need to take to help prevent this often overlooked or underestimated condition.
Examination & Cleaning
At Al Tabeeb Specialist Dental Centre when it comes to having an examination and clean we provide more than just a “check up and cleaning”.
The examination not only involves a detailed analysis of your teeth and gums but also includes your tongue, palate, cheeks, head, neck and jaw muscles.
We often use our intraoral camera to highlight any suspect areas and record these images into your file. This information is documented in our dental software so that any changes or problem areas are identified. When we scale and polish your teeth, it is done thoroughly and as comfortably as possible.
We believe in taking a holistic approach to looking after you. Other factors such as diet, oral hygiene and your general health is carefully appraised as these components can have dramatic effects on your dental health. This way you are likely maintain your dental health lifelong.
Mouthguards
At Al Tabeeb Dental Centre we provide high quality, custom fit mouth guards. These provide the greatest degree of protection for you or your family whenever you are training or playing sports such as football, boxing, martial arts, basketball, hockey, squash or—–. Mouth guards can also be used for many other activities such as horse-riding, skateboarding and trampolining.
We take accurate impressions of your mouth in order to provide you with a highly customized mouth guard that not only fits securely and comfortably over your upper teeth but also covers your gums to help protect the roots of your teeth. If your upper and lower jaw collide together while wearing a custom fitted mouth guard the chance of concussion or injury to the jaws, teeth, cheeks and gums is significantly reduced.
Only a dentist can provide a custom fitted mouth guard which is considered to be the most effective way at preventing injuries to the teeth, mouth and jaws.
If you play sports or require a high quality mouth guard in a wide range of colours, call our friendly team at AlTabeeb Dental.
