General & Family Denistry

High Quality Dental Care for the Whole Family

Dental Examination

Routine dental appointments are essential to maintain good oral health and a happy smile. A standard dental check-up is carried out by an experienced, qualified dentist and is the best way to spot any problems with your mouth before they become serious. Both adults and children require routine dental appointments on a regular basis because preventative dentistry is the key to keeping your mouth healthy.

Routine dental appointments are usually carried out every six months, but the number of times you need to attend these appointments varies from patient to patient. Some patients may require more frequent visits, while others may need to come into the practice less often – your dentist will advise you on how often you need a regular check-up.

What happens at a routine dental check-up?

If it is your first appointment at the practice, your dentist will take a full dental and medical history. They will also:

Thoroughly examine your teeth, gums and mouth.
Oral cancer screening.
Take X-rays if necessary.
Discuss any dental problems you may have had since your last visit
Discuss general health and dietary issues that can affect your teeth and gums – such as alcohol consumption or smoking.
Discuss your teeth-cleaning habits, such as brushing technique, and recommend any improvements such as interdental brushes or flossing as required.
Explain any further treatment you may need, such as fillings, root canal treatment or hygienist appointments.
Provide you with a full treatment plan.
Answer any questions you may have regarding your treatment and what options are available.
If you require no other treatment, your dentist will let you know when you should come for your next routine check-up.

Life Benefits

Maintain good oral health
Spot any problems early
In many cases, prevent problems before they start

Back to Treatments

Book an Appointment

Dental Examination

Dental Hygiene

Dental hygiene treatment is delivered by a specially trained dental hygienist who will help to remove any hard-to-reach plaque from your teeth that may have built up over time.

Here is what you can expect from a hygiene appointment:

Your teeth and gums will be assessed to determine the amount of plaque removal you will need and risk factors will be highlighted.
Your teeth will be professionally cleaned with special equipment and pastes. This process is also known as scaling and polishing.
The hygienist’s role is to show you how to look after your teeth so that they remain free from plaque in the future. You will be advised on the best tooth brushing technique and given tips on flossing and using interdental brushes.

Life Benefits

Minimised risk of tooth loss.
Reduced risk of developing tooth decay and need for fillings.
Fresh minty breath.

Back to Treatments

Book an Appointment

Dental Hygiene

Fillings

If you require a filling in your tooth, a cosmetic option would be to choose a white filling material that matches the shade of your surrounding natural teeth. You can also have any existing metallic fillings replaced with tooth-coloured or ‘white’ fillings. This will allow you to smile without a metallic glint in sight, giving your teeth a more natural appearance overall. Here is how white fillings work:

This is a safe procedure that entails the removal of any decay from your tooth, and taking out the metal or amalgam fillings if you are having them replaced.
The new filling is made from a very hard tooth-coloured substance and will withstand the forces in your mouth when you bite and chew over a long period of time..
The restoration is completed in one visit and your fillings will not be visible when you smile.

Life Benefits

Natural-looking restoration.
Improved cosmetic appearance of filled teeth while still being able to bite and chew as usual.
Hard-wearing restorative solution.

Back to Treatments

Book an Appointment

Fillings

Root Canal Therapy

Root canal treatment (also called endodontics) is needed when the pulp inside your tooth becomes infected through tooth decay or damaged by an injury to your mouth. This infection may spread through the root canal system and could eventually lead to an abscess, causing a great deal of discomfort. If root canal treatment is not carried out, the tooth may need to be taken out.

Root canal therapy involves the following:

First, local anaesthetic will be administered to ensure no discomfort is felt during treatment.
The tooth will be prepared with a drill, allowing access to the root canal system.
The root canal system will be thoroughly cleaned out to remove all infection and pulp.
The root canal system is then filled and sealed temporarily with a crown.
The tooth is checked at a later visit and when all the infection has cleared, the tooth is permanently filled.

Root canal treatment is a skilled and time-consuming procedure and most courses of treatment will involve two or more visits.

Life Benefits

Preservation of remaining healthy tooth structure.
Prevention of infection spreading any further.
Restoration of tooth to its natural look and feel.

Back to Treatments

Book an Appointment

Root Canal Therapy

Emergency

If you have chipped or broken tooth as a result of an accident or injury, it is very important that you see a dentist as soon as possible. The same goes for one or more knocked out teeth. The sooner you are seen by a dental professional the better the chances that the teeth could be re-implanted, depending on the severity of your injury.

Here are some of the steps an emergency dental appointment will cover:

A thorough examination of the injured area will be undertaken. This may include dental x-rays to determine the extent of the damage.
Depending on the severity of the pain, the area will be numbed with local anaesthetic.
The injured area will be sterilised to reduce the risk of infection.
The damaged teeth will be restored temporarily or permanently, depending on the case.
In severe cases the affected tooth may require extraction and implant treatment will be discussed.

If you require emergency dental treatment, you should ask to see a dentist as soon as possible. At our practice we offer appointments for all dental emergencies from toothache to lost or broken crowns, chipped teeth and fillings to abscesses, trauma, avulsed teeth and facial swelling. We can take care of your injuries to ensure you heal quicker and more effectively, ensuring that you avoid additional dental problems and complications in the future.

If you have a dental emergency, please telephone the practice and we will make every effort to see you on the same day if possible.

Call the Practice on 01625 83 83 85.

Life Benefits

Preservation of remaining tooth structure.
Reduced risk of infection.
Improved long-term oral health overall.

Back to Treatments

Book an Appointment

Emergency

Extractions

In cases of advanced gum disease and tooth decay, teeth may need to be extracted. Some patients may also develop impacted wisdom teeth, which can cause intense pain. This is alleviated by having them removed surgically. One area in which it is possible for dentists to specialise is oral surgery, an umbrella term for all dental procedures involving surgery, such as the extraction of teeth or wisdom teeth. It is always important to get the advice of a dental professional if you are worried about any of your teeth. Never attempt to pull out your own tooth at home as this could cause a more serious problem for you.

Tooth extractions typically involve the following:

1. Before the procedure you may require an x-ray of your teeth.
2. Local anaesthetic will be administered to ensure no discomfort is felt during procedure.
3. Dentists have the right equipment and sterile environment to extract teeth with the utmost care and your recovery can be surprisingly quick.
4. In the case of difficult tooth extraction, you may have some swelling after the procedure and discomfort that can be eased with over-the-counter painkillers. In cases of advanced gum disease or periodontitis, antibiotics will be prescribed to reduce the risk of further infection.

Life Benefits

Safe and sterile procedure.
Quick recovery and healing time with reduced infection risk.
Sustained good oral health.

Back to Treatments

Book an Appointment

Extractions

Crowns

A crown is a type of dental restoration used to fix teeth that have been broken, weakened by decay or contain a very large filling. Here is how it works:

The tooth that needs restoring is prepared and an impression is taken.
A crown is made in the dental laboratory to fit the tooth precisely and match the neighbouring teeth.
The crown is then fitted securely on top.

A crown could be a good solution for you if you have some discoloured fillings and would like to improve their appearance. Crowns can be used to replace these to give you a more appealing smile. Additionally, if you have had root canal treatment you will need a crown to protect or cap the restored tooth, allowing you to eat and bite down on it as if it was a real tooth. Crowns are also used to anchor a bridge or denture firmly in place in the mouth.

Life Benefits

Strengthens remaining tooth structure.
Natural-looking restoration.
Functions like a real tooth, so you can bite and chew as usual.

Back to Treatments

Book an Appointment

Crowns

Denture

If you have a few or all of your teeth missing, one solution is to have a denture. Here is

how it works:

A denture is made from hard-wearing material that mimics the look of teeth and gums to give your mouth a natural appearance.
After impressions are taken, a denture is designed in a dental laboratory.
Dentures are made to fit snugly on your gums and you will be able to remove them for cleaning.

When you wear a denture for the first time it may take some getting used to when speaking or eating and chewing. It is important that you take extra care when conducting your hygiene regime so that you can avoid bad breath, tooth decay and gum disease. The hygienist will be able to show you how to best take care of your denture and gums and will tell you about specialised brushes you can use to do this.