A dental exam is a necessary and vital step in all dental procedures and maintaining good oral health. Every element in your mouth affects other elements, which in turn can affect your face and general health. Everything must work in harmony. This means that a complete dental examination must look at all of the pertinent parts.
A general dental exam involves certain key elements. X-rays are vital because they allow a dentist to see the internal structure of a patient's mouth. Bitewing x-rays are standard but in some cases a panoramic x-ray is required. A dentist will often take impressions of a patients mouth in order to fully recreate the mouth in 3-D while allowing a close examination of the mouth's articulation. The soft tissue must be examined, checking for lesions and overall health. A dentist will often use a periodontal probe to check for signs of periodontal disease. Signs of TMJ syndrome are accounted for as well. A complete medical history of the patient is extremely important, so provide your dentist with as much information as you can.
We have a specific dental exam for cosmetic procedures, known as a cosmetic consultation. During the cosmetic consultation the patient will express all goals for improving appearance. A cosmetic dentist then uses this information to evaluate and envision the end result. A thorough examination is then done before a complete cosmetic treatment plan is finalized. Cosmetic dentistry is not a necessary procedure, but your smile can affect how you feel about yourself and often cosmetic dentistry is worth the cost. However, even though dentistry can help you look good, only you can change your life. The dentists at the Atlanta Dental Group PC believe that Cosmetic Dentistry should be integrated with other non-dental procedures to properly achieve what the patient wants.
If you are interested in a dental exam for any particular problem, please consider the Atlanta Dental Group PC. If you have any particular worries or if its been a while since you've had a through examination, it is a good idea to schedule an appointment as soon as possible. If you are interested in cosmetic dentistry and would like to schedule a free cosmetic consultation with our Atlanta cosmetic dentist, Dr. Mark Allan Padolsky, please feel free to call 404-874-7428.