Exams and X-rays – Early detection and monitoring support a healthy smile
Emmanuel Dental & Orthodontics welcomes your family to our “family.” We get a lot of questions about what to expect during the first visit and how to keep your happy, healthy smile going strong. Our team in Richardson, Texas, is happy to answer some of those questions here.
Will I need an exam?
No visit would be complete without an exam performed by our dentists, Drs Pramod Thomas and Fred Silva. As a new patient, this provides us with a “baseline.” We understand your starting point and can then make recommendations accordingly. As a returning patient, ongoing exams allow us to monitor changes in your oral health. As needed, Drs Thomas or Silva may recommend changes in your oral care routine or additional products, medications, and professional services.
Will I need X-rays?
We generally like to take X-rays during new patient visits or when it’s been a while since your last visit to the dentist. We like to stay on top of potential problems with your teeth, gums, and other tissues and structures of your face, jaws, and mouth. Once we get you on a regular schedule of checkups at our office, we typically order X-rays once a year, or earlier if one of our dentists notices something that requires a closer look during an examination.
What do you look for during an exam?
We are looking for potential signs of enamel erosion, cavities, and other forms of tooth decay and damage. We are also on the lookout for signs of inflammation, infection, and gum damage. As providers of full-service general dentistry and orthodontics, we also look beyond the teeth and gums. For instance, we check for:
- Bite problems, or misaligned teeth and/or jaws
- TMJ disorders related to the jaw joints
- Signs of bruxism or chronic teeth grinding
- Anomalies that could indicate precancers or cancerous lesions of the mouth and throat
How do you screen for oral precancers and cancers?
Our regular oral cancer screenings involve a visual inspection, as well as feeling by touch (a process called “palpating”) for any odd lumps, bumps, discoloration, and other red flags. The thing about oral problems is that they often do not cause symptoms early on, when the cancer is confined to its site of origin. This is what makes examinations so important. We can catch problems before they cause damage and symptoms. At this stage, cancers are easier to treat, and we can prevent them from spreading to neighboring and distant sites.
Will you clean my teeth, too?
You bet! No checkup would be complete without a professional cleaning by one of our kind and skilled dental hygienists. Patients love how our team removes surface stains as well as destructive plaque and tartar. As these substances erode teeth and inflame gums, removing them can help reduce your risk of developing destructive dental decay and gum disease. Of course, patients also love how much whiter their teeth look and that minty-fresh feeling after a good cleaning and polishing!
Now that you’ve learned a bit about our approaches and services, Emmanuel Dental & Orthodontics is excited to meet you. If you have additional, specific questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact our team in Richardson, TX at (972) 200-2995. We are here to help and offer an array of dentistry and orthodontic solutions to restore or maintain smiles for individuals and family members with all sorts of needs and at every stage of life.
