We learn as children just how important it is to brush our teeth every day. However, brushing at home alone is usually not enough to thoroughly clean your teeth. With a supplemental professional teeth cleaning, we—the team at Bellevue Dental in Zurich—help you maintain proper oral hygiene so that you can enjoy healthy, natural teeth for as long as possible.
What is a professional teeth cleaning?
Through professional teeth cleaning, we effectively remove bacterial film (also known as plaque) and stubborn deposits from your teeth. In addition, during the cleaning, we trim any protruding edges of crowns or fillings as needed. Professional cleaning is particularly important for areas of the teeth that are difficult or impossible to reach with a toothbrush (such as the spaces between teeth or parts of the back molars).
Benefits of Professional Teeth Cleaning
With professional teeth cleaning, we not only help you achieve a brighter, whiter smile—we also make a valuable contribution to preventive care. This is because proper dental hygiene can successfully prevent common dental diseases such as cavities and periodontitis. Since we remove bacteria from your teeth—and thus from your body—during a professional dental cleaning, we simultaneously reduce the risk of more serious systemic diseases. For example, it is well established in medicine that reducing bacteria through dental hygiene can also lower the risk of developing lung, gastrointestinal, and/or cardiovascular diseases.
Teeth Cleaning Treatment
Before a professional teeth cleaning, we first conduct a comprehensive assessment of your teeth and oral cavity. Based on this, we then develop a personalized teeth cleaning plan designed to achieve optimal oral hygiene.
Depending on your specific oral hygiene situation, we use various specialized instruments and devices during the teeth cleaning process. For example, ultrasonic devices may be used to remove relatively soft dental plaque. For harder deposits, we often use special hand instruments. So-called powder jet devices are particularly well-suited for removing stubborn tooth discoloration caused by coffee, tea, or tobacco, among other things.
Once the individual teeth cleaning is complete, we polish your teeth. This smooths out any rough areas on the teeth, as smooth tooth surfaces are less prone to new deposits. In a subsequent step, we apply a protective film to your teeth using fluoride-containing varnishes or gels.
Upon request, we’ll also provide you with information during your professional teeth cleaning on topics such as optimal at-home oral hygiene and/or the proper use of dental cleaning tools.
Duration of a Professional Teeth Cleaning
The duration of a teeth cleaning varies depending on the patient. Factors that influence the individual duration of a dental cleaning include, for example, the desired scope of treatment and the extent of plaque buildup. On average, however, adult patients can expect the procedure to take about one hour.
If you’re interested, we’d be happy to provide you with comprehensive information about professional dental cleanings at our Bellevue dental practice in Zurich. Simply use our contact form.