Do Dental Sealants Need Replacements?

To maintain optimal dental health, it is essential to practice daily brushing and flossing. If you commit to maintaining excellent dental hygiene by brushing and flossing your teeth daily and getting six monthly oral prophylaxis from the dental office in Uncasville, CT, you significantly lower your risk so developing dental problems like tooth decay, gum disease, and dental caries.

Unfortunately, not all teeth are accessible for cleaning correctly, especially your molars with deep grooves and pits. Your molars are prime targets for food particles and bacteria to remain trapped and are challenging to clean even if you are stringent with your dental hygiene routine. Therefore the Uncasville dental office suggests sealing your back teeth with tooth sealants to help correct the situation.

Tooth Sealants Explained

You can consider tooth sealants as a protective shield over your teeth. The sealant is a slimy coating of clear plastic painted on the chewing surfaces of your molars to create a smoother surface over them to seal out harmful microorganisms. Tooth sealants also make it comfortable to clean your back teeth and eliminate food particles and bacteria trapped in the grooves and pits.

The process for getting dental sealants in Uncasville, CT, is straightforward and non-invasive. When you visit the Uncasville dental office, the dentist will place an etching solution on the molar to help rough its surface and rinse it before applying the sealant material on the molar in the grooves and pits and hardening it with ultraviolet light. They also polish the tooth to ensure the sealant doesn’t impact your bite.

Should Children Receive Dental Sealants?

Dental sealants are excellent for children. In reality, pediatric dentists suggest dental sealants for children because they are not diligent with their dental hygiene regimen and are prone to tooth decay. The CDC comments that children having dental sealants lower the risks of developing cavities by three times more than children without sealants. In addition, the sealants help prevent infections and dental problems in children’s mouths while protecting their teeth from detrimental bacteria. When children learn proper dental hygiene, they benefit from having an additional layer of protection over their teeth from dental sealants.

Dental sealants are affordable and easy to apply, ensuring children will not feel stressed during or after the procedure. The Uncasville dentist completes the process in a few minutes allowing your child to start regular activities soon after the procedure. The prices for dental sealants, besides being affordable, receive support from your dental insurers that help reduce the costs further. However, if you want dental sealants as an adult, you might not receive the same benefit from your insurers and must therefore discuss the prices of this excellent treatment with the dentist before considering the process. However, you can have dental sealants placed on unrestored teeth and will not be eligible for the treatment if you have teeth with restorations.

The Lifespan of Dental Sealants

After applying dental sealants, you can expect the barrier to remain on the teeth for after a decade with proper care. The sealants protect against 80 percent of cavities for two years after the application and continue the production against 50 percent of holes for another four. However, if your children have dental sealants on their teeth, you must ensure they maintain excellent dental hygiene and take them to regular dental exams and cleanings to ensure their teeth are fine and the dental sealants are durable. However, dental sealants can wear off with time, making it essential to repair the application.

Fortunately, the need to replace dental fillings doesn’t arise because the dentist can look for chips and breaks during regular appointments and repair them whenever they notice any discrepancies. However, if there is a need to replace the sealants, the procedure remains just as straightforward and affordable as the first application to continue promoting excellent oral health.

Dental sealants prevent unnecessary complications in children’s teeth that make them lose school time because of infections in their mouths. In addition, children’s dental conditions cost you time and money because of the restorations they need to fill cavities or receive more intensive treatments like root canals or extractions. Therefore you must consider getting them a preventive measure against dental infections by letting them have dental sealants on their teeth.

If you would like a protective barrier on your or your children’s teeth, Uncasville Dental Associates provides them as the first line of defense against dental issues. Consult this practice today to protect your children’s teeth besides your own.