Preventive Care & Scaling

The cheapest and most comfortable treatment in dentistry is the one never needed. Six-month checks catch decay before it hurts and gum disease before it costs bone. None of the procedures on this page requires anaesthetic.

Book Contact

FrequencyEvery 6 months

Chair time30–45 min

AnaesthesiaNot required

ConsultationFree

Recall checkFree

What a check-up involves

An examination is not just a hunt for cavities. Pocket depths, margins of existing restorations, wear patterns, occlusion, tongue and cheek mucosa, a soft-tissue screen and bite-wing radiographs where indicated are all part of the same visit.

Bite-wings reveal interproximal decay that cannot be seen by eye. Caught on a radiograph, it is a small filling; by the time it is visible clinically it is usually close to needing root canal treatment.

Scaling and afterwards

Calculus is mineralised plaque and does not come off with a brush; it is fractured away with an ultrasonic tip and the teeth are then polished, since plaque adheres less readily to a smooth surface. The procedure is painless, though inflamed gums may bleed slightly.

A few days of cold sensitivity afterwards is normal, and a desensitising toothpaste helps. Smokers and heavy coffee or tea drinkers may need three cleanings a year rather than two; we set the interval from the state of the gums.

08 — Process

The process

01Examination

Teeth, gums and soft tissues are assessed.

02Radiographs

Bite-wings and a panoramic film where indicated.

03Scaling

Calculus and stain removed ultrasonically.

04Polish & fluoride

Surfaces polished and fluoride varnish applied.

05Hygiene coaching

Brushing, flossing and interdental technique shown.

Related services

Cleaning & maintenance package
Family check package (4 people)
Student check package
Sealants & fluoride
Desensitising treatment
Resin infiltration (Icon)

A treatment plan and its costing are prepared individually after examination.

11 — FAQ

Common questions

Yes — both decay and gum disease are symptomless early on. Pain signals that a problem has advanced, not that it has started. The point of a six-month check is to intervene at the stage you cannot detect yourself.

Every six months suits most people. For smokers, patients with a history of periodontal disease and those in orthodontic treatment we advise every three to four months. What sets the interval is how quickly calculus forms, and that varies from person to person.

Generally yes — oscillating-rotating and sonic models remove plaque more effectively. But the brush does not substitute for technique: two minutes, a 45-degree angle at the gum margin and reaching every surface still decide the outcome. Models with a pressure sensor are a particular help if you brush hard.

A brush cleans three of a tooth’s five surfaces and cannot reach the two interproximal ones — where a large share of decay begins. If floss is difficult, interdental brushes or a water flosser are good alternatives. What matters is that those two surfaces get cleaned, not which tool does it.

05 — Team