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How often should you go to the dentist?
Evidence-based risk assessment determines visit frequency
March 23, 2007
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. When it comes to routine dental appointments, how often should you go? "Most dental patients in our community follow a six-month schedule for examinations and teeth cleaning," said Jim Gowan, DDS, associate dental director for the HealthPartners Dental Group. "What these patients may not know is that they may need to come in more frequently or less frequently, depending on the state of their individual oral health."
Your oral health holds the key to how often you visit the dentist. HealthPartners Dental Clinics use an individual risk assessment to determine each patients risk for tooth decay and periodontal disease. Patients are assessed as low, moderate or high risk. Depending on the risk level, the dentist will recommend the appropriate frequency of dental visits as well as other interventions to improve the patients oral health. For example, individuals at low risk may only need to see their dentist once a year while individuals at greater risk will require more frequent and intensive care.
"There is little scientific evidence that the annual dental examination is necessary for maintaining oral health in healthy children or adults who have good dental hygiene," said Gowan. "Conversely, there is evidence that more frequent dental visits may be necessary for patients at increased risk for oral diseases."
Gowan recommends that patients talk to their dentist or dental hygienist about their personal risk for tooth decay or periodontal disease at every visit. "Ideally, your dental professional should be assessing your risk at each routine visit," said Gowan. "From there, he or she can help you determine how often you should have your teeth cleaned as well as other dietary and lifestyle changes that may reduce your risk."
And while you're reassessing the frequency of your dental visits, you may also want to consider another interesting dental fact: it is possible for early tooth decay to reverse itself with good oral hygiene and dietary habits.
About HealthPartners
Founded in 1957, the HealthPartners (www.healthpartners.com) family of healthcare companies serve more than one million medical and dental health plan members nationwide. It is the largest consumer-governed, nonprofit health care organization in the nation, providing care, coverage, research and education to improve the health of members, patients and the community. For the third year in a row, HealthPartners is rated one of the best commercial health plans in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, NCQA's "America's Best Health Plans 2007" and is ranked "Highest in Member Satisfaction among Commercial Health Plans in the Minnesota-Wisconsin Region" by J.D. Power and Associates.
Contact: 952-883-5314
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