Its not as easy a question as it might sound. Historically people were told that they needed to see the dentist every 6 months but that’s not always the case. Here we will try to clarify how often or when you need to see the dentist.
1-3 months
A selection of patients are seen up to every 3 months. These patients include those with complex dental or medical needs. Commonly people who have active or chronic gum disease would see the hygienist every 3months. Patients who have a high caries rate due to medical/other reasons would be seen by the dentist to assess the hard and soft tissues in the mouth.
6 months
This is a standard recall for the majority of patients. This would normally encompass a normal check-up and cleaning. At Shandon Dental we would recall by SMS every 6 months to ensure you don’t miss this appointment.
What’s involved in a general check-up? Check out our blog on this here.
6-12 months
Very low risk patients are seen between 6-12 months. It’s the authors opinion that an one should not go more than 12 months without a dental check-up. One is deemed low risk if they have little/no signs of periodontal disease and a low decay rate.
Children 0-16 years
A child’s mouth is constantly changing and therefore they should be seen at least every six months. This is to ensure development is progressing at a normal rate and to ensure the teeth and soft tissues stay healthy and disease free. It’s important to time orthodontic treatment correctly and your dentist can aid in this if required.
Emergency Appointments
In certain cases, it’s important to be seen in less than 24 hours and these include
- Severe toothache
- Facial swelling
- Abscess
- Uncontrollable bleeding from the mouth
Non-Emergency Appointments
Certain other problems will not urgent should be seen sooner rather than later leaving no longer than a week to two weeks. These include
- Wisdom tooth pain
- Sinusitis
- Broken/chipped teeth
- Minor swelling gums
- Bleeding gums
- Advanced sensitivity/minor pain
- Unknown new lumps/bumps in the mouth
To book an appointment don’t hesitate to contact us on 0214305569 email on info@shandondental.ie or via https://www.shandondental.ie/contact-us/