General Dentistry
Our aim is to prevent the need for dental treatment by increasing patient awareness of dental disease and how to prevent it. Oral health evaluations are carried out according to the patient's dental needs (6-18 monthly). They will also have regular re-care visits to our hygienist (once again to suit their health requirements).
Good daily oral hygiene is the basis of prevention of most dental problems.
We offer fissure sealants to our younger patients – a coating placed into the grooves of teeth to help prevent tooth decay in these difficult to clean areas.
Regular oral cancer checks are carried out for early detection of any problems.
It is important to learn good dental care habits from a young age. With children up to around the age on nine we involve the parents in the daily cleaning programme, encouraging them to floss their children’s teeth a few times a week. Scientific research shows that this greatly reduces the risk of decay starting between teeth.
We also advise preventive techniques such as fissure sealing permanent molars as they appear in the mouth and we recommend a healthy diet.
We offer two monthly plans for children, one which will cover regular checkups (number of visits per year advised by Paula) and the other also provides for one visit to the hygienist per year. This is particularly important if children are wearing braces as these make cleaning very difficult. We will see new child patients for a free initial consultation and then they either join a plan or pay as they go. The plan offers other benefits such as emergency cover and a reduction in cost of any treatment required.
Do you suffer from chronic head, neck or shoulder aches?
Do you wake up with sore or tired jaws in the morning?
Do you sleep badly?
Do you clench or grind your teeth at night or during the day when stressed?
These symptoms could be caused by your teeth.
Dr Paula Richardson prides herself in attending many courses related to the way we bite and functioning of the jaws. She is a member of the British Society of Occlusal Studies. She could possibly help you with some of the above symptoms by doing a thorough analysis of your muscles of the face, head, neck and back and functioning of the teeth. By making a small appliance (Lucia Jig) which is worn over the front teeth at night, we can ascertain whether your teeth could be causing any of these problems or not.