Let’s get back into a good oral health routine
We know that there are a lot of things everyone will want to do as we reach the vaccination milestones that allow Melbourne to open up and get back to business.
No matter what your priorities are for ‘getting back to normal’, we urge you to find time as soon as possible to catch up on your oral health maintenance.
To put it plainly, come in for a check-up and a thorough cleaning and let’s all get back to regular visits to your local family dentist.
Even before COVID restrictions and lockdowns, some people only came to see us when they had an issue or experienced pain. Of course, we can help you then, but we’d prefer that you never get to that point.
That’s why we have always suggested that every member of your family comes to see us every six months.
Maintenance is better than cure
The truism “Prevention is better than cure” is often attributed to the Dutch philosopher Desiderius Erasmus about 500 years ago.
It’s become a fundamental principle of modern health care, partly because we do have so many wonderful diagnostic tools at our disposal, but mostly because every health care professional has the education and training to make it a reality.
In other words, we know what works to prevent issues arising, in the first place, as well as how to spot any signs that something isn’t quite right, so we can nip it in the bud before it has a chance to become a bigger problem – more than likely with greater discomfort, inconvenience, and expense.
It’s really the core of our mission as a dedicated family dental practice.
Oral health remains a national concern
To give you some perspective on how poor oral health and oral health maintenance is impacting Australians, we’ve had a look at the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare website as well as the latest data from Australia’s Oral Health Tracker (which was gathered more than two years ago).
Here are just four noteworthy statistics:
- 32.1% of adults (aged 15+) have untreated tooth decay, a 6.6% increase from 25.5% in 2004/06.
- 28.8% of adults (aged 15+) have periodontal pockets (>4mm), an indication of gum disease, a 9% increase from 19.8% in 2004/06.
- In 2017–18, about 72,000 hospitalisations for dental conditions may have been prevented with earlier treatment.
- Only 48.8% of adults (18+) had a dental check-up in the preceding 12 months (keep in mind, this was pre-COVID).
Our takeaway is: we need to do better, as a developed country with outstanding dental services.
It’s a team effort
Looking after your oral health is a team effort, in that you can do quite a bit yourself, but you do need a dentist and oral hygienist to help you do it properly. In much the same way, if you were to leave it all to us, we’d be looking at big problems!
No matter how diligently you brush and floss and watch what you eat, the build-up of dental plaque is inevitable. The plaque calcifies over time and becomes tartar and, once this has happened, it can no longer be removed with a toothbrush. These deposits are filled with harmful bacteria and, if they aren’t removed, will begin to irritate the gums and cause gingivitis.
You might recall that last year we added the state-of-the-art EMS AIRFLOW to the Middleborough Dental Care arsenal.
In case you missed it, the EMS AIRFLOW uses medical-grade powder to painlessly remove plaque and stains.
We still need to use the ultrasonic scaler – the pointy thing that makes a squeaky noise – but for a much shorter time thanks to the new machine.
If you haven’t given your teeth the ‘spa treatment’ that the EMS AIRFLOW provides, you’re missing out!
Call and make a booking now
If you’re fully vaccinated, or soon will be, make the call to us today.
Book the whole family for their check-ups and scale and cleans and let’s get back to that complete oral health maintenance and care routine.
It’s an incredibly important aspect of your overall health.
See you soon.
