Dentists take the time to show patients exactly how to break
up and clean away plaque with toothbrushing methods not the same as those most
of us use; and they demonstrate the use of dental floss, not as most of us use
it to merely dislodge food particles from between the teeth, but also to get
plaque off the sides of the teeth.
They send patients home with a supply of
wafers and a little dental mirror to be used for self-checking on home
cleaning. They take the time to recheck with wafers in the office on subsequent
visits to make certain home care is effective. Ideally, the mouth should be
cleansed immediately after a meal or snack. Practically, that is a difficult
goal for many people. But these dentists emphasize that, because it takes 24
hours or more for plaque to reform, even a single thorough cleansing of the
mouth at night before retiring can go a long way to minimize decay and gum
disease.
And these dentists can point to patients, children andadults, with long histories of severe decay brought under control by educated
home care. Among these dentists are periodontitis, specialists in gum diseases,
who get only the worst cases referred to them-so far advanced that surgery to
eliminate the deep gum pockets is necessary. But, typically, they will not operate
until the patient is shown how to care for his mouth at home and goes on a
prevention program for several weeks or even months. In virtually every case,
these periodontitis report, they are able to demonstrate that the patient
himself, with proper home care, can bring even the most advanced periodontal
disease under control so that, once surgical repairs are made, there will be no
recurrence.
