Dental Check-ups and Preventive Dentistry

To Maintain Healthy Teeth throughout your Life

Do you think you should only visit the dentist once your teeth start to hurt? In fact, to maintain healthy teeth, prevention before pain occurs is extremely important. At SACHI Dental Clinic, we place a strong emphasis on preventive dentistry so that you can enjoy delicious meals with your own teeth for a lifetime.

What is Preventive Dentistry?

Preventive dentistry encompasses efforts to proactively prevent dental diseases such as cavities and periodontal disease, thereby maintaining oral health. This specifically involves regular check-ups and cleanings at the dental clinic, alongside proper brushing techniques at home.

Preventive dentistry offers the following benefits.

• Enables early detection and early treatment of cavities and periodontal disease
• Halts the progression of cavities and periodontal disease, preventing severe complications
• Reduces the risk of tooth loss, allowing you to enjoy meals with your own teeth throughout your life
• Prevents bad breath and maintains a clean oral environment
• Ultimately, saves on treatment costs and time

Why is Preventive Dentistry Important?

In the early stages, cavities and periodontal disease often have little to no noticeable symptoms. As a result, when patients visit a dental clinic after symptoms such as pain appear, the condition has often already progressed.

In particular, periodontal disease is said to affect about 80% of Japanese adults. Moreover, it is a serious condition and the leading cause of tooth loss. It has also been linked to systemic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. In other words, prevention is extremely important not only to protect oral health, but also overall health.

In addition, treating cavities and periodontal disease requires both time and expense. However, by proactively engaging in preventive dentistry, you can significantly reduce the risk of these diseases. Ultimately, this may also help reduce medical costs.

Preventive Dentistry Services

At our clinic, we offer a variety of preventive dentistry options tailored to each patient’s oral condition and lifestyle. We will introduce each in detail below.

Regular Check-ups

During a regular check-up, we perform the following:

• Consultation: We will thoroughly inquire about your current dental condition, lifestyle habits, and any concerns you may have.
• Visual Examination: We check the entire oral cavity for cavities, periodontal disease, mucosal abnormalities, and other issues.
• X-ray examination: X-rays are taken as needed to check for cavities and periodontal disease in areas that cannot be seen, as well as the condition of the jawbone.
• Periodontal examination: Using an instrument called a probe, we measure the depth of periodontal pockets. We also check for gum inflammation, bleeding, and tooth mobility.
• Cavity Check: We check for the presence and progression of cavities using specialized instruments and visual examination.

Based on these test results, we will propose a preventive plan tailored to each patient. The frequency of regular checkups varies depending on your oral condition, but in general we recommend about once every 3 to 6 months.

Professional Mechanical Tooth Cleaning (PMTC)

PMTC stands for Professional Mechanical Tooth Cleaning. It is a professional tooth cleaning performed by a dentist or dental hygienist using specialized equipment. It thoroughly removes plaque, tartar, and stains that cannot be fully removed by daily brushing. It also polishes the tooth surface to a smooth finish. PMTC is essential professional care for maintaining healthy teeth.

PMTC offers the following benefits:

• Prevention of cavities and periodontal disease
• Prevention of bad breath
• Removal of tooth discoloration (stain removal)
• Strengthening of tooth enamel

Airflow

AirFlow is a cleaning method that removes plaque and stains (discoloration) by spraying fine powder particles onto the tooth surface. It can effectively remove buildup from areas that are difficult to reach with a toothbrush or interdental brush. It is also a newer cleaning method that removes stains without damaging the teeth.

Airflow offers the following benefits:

• Removal of surface stains on teeth
• Cleaning of periodontal pockets
• Biofilm removal
• Gum massage effect

Fluoride Application

Fluoride application is a method of strengthening tooth enamel and preventing cavities by applying a high-concentration fluoride to the tooth surface. Fluoride applied at a dental clinic is more concentrated than household toothpaste, so a higher cavity-prevention effect can be expected.

Fluoride offers the following benefits:

• Promotes tooth remineralization
• Strengthens tooth enamel, making it more resistant to acid
• Suppresses the activity of cavity-causing bacteria

At our clinic, we recommend the most suitable method according to age and circumstances, such as fluoride gel for children and fluoride mouth rinse for adults.

Brushing Instruction

Proper brushing is the foundation of preventing cavities and periodontal disease. At our clinic, we provide careful guidance on appropriate brushing methods tailored to each patient’s oral condition. Specifically, we explain how to choose a toothbrush, how to hold it, and how to move it. In addition, we clearly explain how to use interdental brushes and dental floss.

Lifestyle Guidance

Dental health is closely related to daily lifestyle habits. Therefore, at our clinic, we ask in detail about lifestyle factors that affect your teeth, such as diet, smoking habits, and stress. Based on this, we provide advice for improvement.

Preventive Dentistry by Age Group

In preventive dentistry, it is important to provide appropriate care according to age and life stage. Below are key points by age group.

Preventive Dentistry for Children

Baby teeth are more prone to cavities than permanent teeth, and cavities also tend to progress more quickly. That is why prevention from an early age is extremely important. At our clinic, we provide the following preventive treatments according to your child’s stage of growth.

Fluoride application
Sealants: By filling the grooves of the back teeth with a special resin, cavities are prevented.
Brushing instruction: We provide enjoyable and careful guidance on proper brushing methods.
Regular checkups: We detect cavities and alignment issues early and provide appropriate treatment.

We also provide detailed advice to parents and guardians on at-home care, such as how to do finishing brushing and how to offer snacks.

Preventive Dentistry for Adults

In preventive dentistry for adults, preventing periodontal disease is extremely important, not only preventing cavities. This is because periodontal disease is the leading cause of tooth loss and often progresses without noticeable symptoms. Therefore, regular checkups and professional care are essential.

At our clinic, we provide the following preventive treatments.

Regular checkups: We perform periodontal examinations, cavity checks, X-ray examinations, and more.
PMTC / AirFlow: We remove not only tartar, but also biofilm and stains to prevent periodontal disease and cavities.
Brushing instruction: We provide guidance on appropriate brushing methods tailored to each patient’s mouth.
Lifestyle guidance: We provide advice on habits that increase periodontal disease risk, such as diet and smoking.

In addition, our clinic also focuses on preventing bad breath. We propose care to maintain a clean oral environment by removing periodontal bacteria and tongue coating (tongue plaque), which can cause bad breath. With “Adult Preventive Dentistry,” let us help you achieve healthy teeth and fresh breath.

Preventive Dentistry for Seniors

As you age, saliva production decreases, increasing the risk of cavities and periodontal disease. In addition, the effects of systemic diseases and side effects of medications can also make oral problems more likely to occur.

With these points in mind, our clinic considers both the oral and overall condition of elderly patients and provides the following preventive treatments.

Regular checkups: We carefully assess your oral condition and provide necessary treatment.
PMTC / AirFlow: We remove biofilm and stains to prevent periodontal disease and cavities.
Oral function training: We strengthen the muscles around the mouth to maintain and improve chewing and swallowing ability.
Aspiration pneumonia prevention: We provide guidance and care to help prevent saliva and food from entering the airway.
Dry mouth care: We provide care to relieve symptoms, such as massages to stimulate saliva secretion and the use of moisturizers.

Preventive dentistry for older adults aims not only to maintain oral health, but also to improve overall health and QOL (quality of life). Let us help you continue enjoying meals and living a healthy life.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Here, we answer frequently asked questions about preventive dentistry.

How often should I visit for preventive dentistry?

It varies depending on your oral condition, but in general we recommend regular checkups once every 3 to 6 months. However, for those at high risk of cavities or periodontal disease, or those undergoing orthodontic treatment, checkups may be necessary once every 1 to 2 months.

How much does preventive dentistry cost?

Preventive dentistry fees include services covered by insurance and those that are self-paid. For example, regular checkups and tartar removal are covered by insurance. On the other hand, PMTC and AirFlow are self-paid treatments. For details, please feel free to contact our clinic.

Is PMTC painful?

Because PMTC cleans the tooth surface using specialized equipment, you will rarely feel pain. However, if you have gum inflammation or sensitive teeth, you may feel temporary sensitivity. If you have concerns, please let us know in advance.

Does Airflow damage teeth?

Because AirFlow removes stains using fine powder particles, there is no need to worry about damaging the teeth. In fact, it has the effect of smoothing the tooth surface, which makes plaque and stains less likely to adhere.

At what age should I start brushing my child’s teeth?

Once teeth begin to erupt, start by cleaning with gauze. From around age 1, begin practicing brushing using a toothbrush for infants. Please continue finishing brushing until around the upper grades of elementary school.