Many patients assume their treatment ends the moment they depart from our practice with their shiny new smile. However while you may no longer visit us, you will still be required to pay close attention to aftercare. The team at Dent1st provides advice and information on aftercare for all dental treatments. We would encourage you to read through the information and advice provided below.

Our promise to you

As a dental practice we are in business to treat our patients and resolve their dental problems. Some people assume we may not provide good advice – they consider we may profit from rotten teeth rather than healthy ones.

We would like to put your mind at rest in this respect. The entire team at Dent1st have an interest and moral responsibility to provide good dental education and aftercare advice to assist you in avoiding future treatments which may otherwise be necessary. We would rather see patients with good oral health than be required to treat people who are suffering from pain, lost teeth and dental issues which may easily have been avoided.

The importance of regular check-ups

Regular check-ups are vital in order to monitor and maintain good oral health. We provide a low cost annual check-up scheme, so the cost of maintaining your original treatment condition will not be financially compromised.

When you elect to have certain procedures performed, a regular check-up is mandatory. These procedures are dental implant treatments and bone treatments. If you do not have your regular annual check-up after such a procedure is performed, you may invalidate the warranty attached to the completed dental work.

Furthermore, visiting us on a regular basis may save you a considerable sum of money over time. For instance, if a natural tooth is failing we can carry out an affordable root canal treatment at an early stage. This is preferable – both financially and practically – to extracting the tooth and implanting a replacement, a procedure that could potentially cost you hundreds of pounds.

Similarly if a small degree of decay is discovered in a tooth, it can be filled instead of requiring a root canal treatment, which can also cost a significant sum. Furthermore in some cases a hygiene treatment can be performed, enabling you to avoid even the smallest degree of decay and fillings. This can save you a considerable amount of pain and it will also save your healthy smile. The team at Dent1st is dedicated to preserving your good dental health both now and long into the future.

Regular hygiene treatments

This is probably the cheapest option to ensure long term treatment success and to maximise the length of time where no additional treatment is required. Our hygienist will evaluate the condition of your teeth and gums and note any areas you may be neglecting to take good care of. She can also assist you in learning how to maintain good oral health every single day.

Our hygienist, Mariann, is one of the leading hygienists in her profession. Furthermore she has an MSc degree in psychology, so she has a deep understanding of dental fears and phobias and is able to guide and support those patients who require additional help in this respect. We recommend you reserve an appointment with Mariann twice a year at the minimum in order to maintain excellent oral health.

We also provide you with a number of aftercare leaflets as well as personal advice following the completion of your treatment. These are as follows:

• After care instruction X
• After care instruction Y

Focusing on better oral hygiene habits for the future

When you complete your treatment with us, it is highly advisable to take some time to sit down and consider the process you have gone through. It is particularly noteworthy to consider your dental health up to this point, to ascertain whether any particular steps led to the treatment being required.

• Do you feel your oral health was good enough in the past?
• Do you think you brushed your teeth regularly enough?
• Do you feel you are doing everything necessary to prevent further tooth decay?
• Have you used interdental brushes and floss?
• Do you try to avoid fizzy and acidic drinks?
• Do you grind your teeth at night? (this is often caused by worry or stress; if you can find the solution to the particular worry you have, the teeth grinding often subsides by itself)
• Do you visit your local dentist at least once a year?
• Do you visit your local hygienist at least twice a year?
• Did you have a dentist or hygienist at all prior to undertaking your treatment with us?
• Do you agree it would have been cheaper to clean your teeth one additional time each day in the last few years, instead of needing to pay for your recent treatment?

Did you know..?

The average adult need spend only 10-15 minutes per day on proper oral care, including a thorough brush and floss of their teeth. This can provide an almost lifetime warranty on your own natural teeth. This adds up to 3650 minutes or 61 hours per year.

How much time have you spent taking care of your oral health in the past year? Perhaps it has been half of the allotted time above – perhaps 30 hours.

If you consider you have neglected your teeth for 30 hours per year, consider also how much you earn per hour in your work. Consider now how much time you spent on appointments for your recent treatment. Include the time and cost of travelling to and from your appointments, being absent from work and perhaps also using a portion of your holiday entitlement.

It is clear that you probably do not earn as much in wages over the space of 30 hours as you perhaps spent on your recent treatment. Furthermore you cannot put a price on your precious free time and holidays. You would probably concur that maintaining good oral health will result in far less inconvenience in the long term.

If you glanced at the list of questions above yet you did not consider them in depth, perhaps now is the best time to look back over them and consider how easy it is to preserve your dental health long into the future. If you have mislaid your aftercare information, please contact our office and request a new copy. Should you have any questions at any time, you are always most welcome to call our support and customer service team. We are always ready to assist in any way we can.