To encourage prevention we do recommend that you have regular check-ups. It is usually much easier and less costly to treat a problem early on rather than when you have toothache.

Children

Being near to four schools means that we are experienced in treating children. We encourage children to register and start attending the practice as soon as their baby teeth appear. Visits from an early age are fun and help us to show children how to keep their teeth for life.

Adults

Although you may not appear to be be having any problems, conditions such as gum disease can gradually develop without being realised. We recommend that all adults attend for regular inspections so that we can assist you to keep a healthy mouth. Remember that your smile is one of the most important aspects of how you look.

What we check

A check-up is much more than just examining teeth. We will check the following:

• Medical History.
  To ensure your safety, and so that we know about any conditions which may affect your mouth, we will ask you to fill in a comprehensive medical history.
• Cancer Screening.
  Examining your mouth carefully for cancer and signs of any other illnesses allows early detection. This ensures that prompt treatment can be given which greatly improves any outcome.
• Gums.
  We test for gum disease using a special instrument and we record our findings using a World Health Organisation classification. If you have bleeding gums you have the first stage of gum disease!
• TMJ (jaw joints).
  Problems with the TMJ are very common and can lead to pain and headaches. We will assess you for this condition.
• Missing and Crooked Teeth.
  If you have missing or crooked teeth this very often leads to other problems such as TMJ dysfunction, gum disease, and increased tooth wear.
• Tooth Wear.
  This is an increasing problem especially in young adults and the elderly, but if detected early we can do a lot to alleviate it.
• Decay (Caries).
  We carefully examine all tooth surfaces and around existing restorations for decay. Just because you cannot feel a problem doesn't mean to say there isn't one!
• X-rays.
  To enable us to assess many of the above conditions it is standard practice to take X-rays from time to time depending on the condition of your mouth.

Planning treatment

After we have recorded all of the above, we will then tell you of our findings and discuss what needs to be done. We welcome your questions and comments about what we can achieve for you.

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