Five Questions You Should Ask During Your Next Dental Appointment

For our team at Frontier Family Dental and for all dentists in Powell, WY, patient communication remains the key to providing outstanding dental care. Dr. Williams wants to help every patient achieve the healthy, great-looking smile they’ve been dreaming of showing. But for Dr. Williams to know what patients want out of their oral health, they need to feel comfortable with asking the right questions.

As you plan for your next visit to Frontier Family Dental or to see any of the dentists in Powell, WY, be ready to know what you want to achieve out of your visit and how you’d like your oral health to look, function, and feel in the future.

Talking about their oral health can feel a little awkward for patients who may know what they want but not how to ask for it. With that in mind, here are a few questions Dr. Williams would love to hear asked by patients more often.

How can I get a whiter smile?

A bright and vibrant smile can significantly change how you feel about your appearance and your oral health. In recent years, teeth whitening has become incredibly popular and now ranks as the number one cosmetic dental treatment in the U.S. Wanting a whiter smile that removes years of eating and drinking enamel staining items is perfectly normal and easy to do.

For patients with good oral health, teeth whitening offers a safe, affordable and effective option for removing stains. Dr. Williams can provide you with a recommendation on the best whitening solution that matches your oral health needs. Whether an over-the-counter option or an in-office, prescription strength remedy, we can help you achieve the type of smile you desire.

Why do dental x-rays matter?

For patients uneasy about the potential of radiation exposure or who hope to reduce the cost of their dental care, x-rays may seem like an unnecessary or unwanted procedure. However, x-rays offer Dr. Williams an important glimpse into a patient’s oral health and an idea of what problems may lurk just below the gum line.

For patients worried about radiation exposure, know that x-rays present no threat to your health. The amount of radiation patients receive from an x-ray is minuscule and perfectly safe.

Those hoping to avoid the cost of dental x-rays should also know that most dental insurances cover at least one set of x-rays a year. If you have dental insurance, you probably won’t have to pay any more for your dental care whether you receive x-rays or not.

When you consider the benefit x-rays offer patients’ oral health, it’s one procedure you should learn to enjoy.

How frequently should I schedule a cleaning?

For most patients, one dental cleaning every six months should offer all of the protection their oral health requires. However, some patients may need to see Dr. Williams and our team of dental hygienists more frequently depending on the current state of their oral health.

Patients with gingivitis, a mild form of gum disease, or periodontitis, a far more serious form of the disease, may need to schedule cleanings more frequently until their gums return to health. Additionally, patients with certain underlying health conditions, such as diabetes or arthritis, may also need more preventative care to help protect their oral health.

If Dr. Williams recommends you schedule a cleaning every four months, for example, it’s not just so he can charge your insurance more money. Your oral health needs more attention if you hope to avoid the types of problems that can impact your ability to enjoy eating, drinking, and smiling in the future.

What can I do to help better protect my oral health?

A question dentists in Powell, WY love to hear patients ask more often is what they can do to better protect their oral health? Fortunately, enjoying quality oral health only requires that patients remain focused on practicing quality oral hygiene at home.

By far, the most effective steps you can take to protect your teeth and gums from disease and decay include the following:

• Brush at least twice a day for two minutes.
• Floss at least once a day.
• Eat a balance diet that’s low on artificial sugars.
• Quit smoking

That’s it. Practicing these simple steps can make an enormous difference to your long-term oral health.

Should I consider dental implants?

If your smile is missing one or more teeth, you don’t need to deal with the effects of a diminished smile any longer. Dental implants offer an effective and lasting solution for repairing a smile with a few unwanted gaps.

Gaps in a smile can cause teeth that surround the gap to start shifting to fill the now vacant hole. As teeth shift, they can impact your bite, making it far more difficult to eat without experiencing any discomfort.

Fortunately, dental implants look, function, and feel just like your natural teeth, so you can repair your smile back to health without anyone ever noticing.