How often do you see a dental hygienist? How are your gums?

[shinynewshoez]

I try to go every 6 months as I have some issues that mean my gums need an eye kept on them, but it's been a year for me recently. Fortunately, my gums were good! I use an electric toothbrush and have done for years, but keep meaning to also use a water flosser I got ages ago and as yet have not opened the box I do floss with normal floss though.

How often do you go to the hygienist? Are your gums in good shape?

Also, is root planing still a thing these days or does it not happen anymore? One of my dentists told me a few years ago they don't really tend to do that these days, but I think others still rate it?

I see the dentist once a year, that's it. I don't always bother to floss and only brush once a day.

DH sees dentist twice a year and hygenist twice, so goes every three months. He has a range of interdental brushes, floss etc, flosses assiduously every day and brushes three times a day.

Guess which one of us has the perfect-scoring gums and which one doesn't. A lot of it is apparently genetic.

Neither of us has had a filling in several decades but that's down to rarely eating sugar rather than genetics.

I've never heard of root planing and don't want to find out.

Root planing went out 30+ years ago!

we do root surface debridement now aka pmpr ( professional mechanical plaque removal ) or sub pmpr which means cleaning under the gum line. Root planing involved removing the surface of the tooth - bad idea

most people go either 6 monthly or 3 monthly - your hygienist will tell you what you need
water flosser is a good idea but you should floss too and /or use the little micro brushes every day

fyi my gums are super clean 😂 ( but then I’m a hygienist so I’d hope that was the case)

I go for a dental checkup every six months, but don't see the dental hygienist because she comes from the James Herriot school of equine dentistry and is so rough that she damaged mine and dh's fillings which we then had to have replaced. I use a specialist toothbrush and my gums are fine according to the dentist.

We moved just over a year ago , and ashamed to say hadn’t been to dentist since covid 🤦‍♀️ found new dentist just last week … bloody fantastic!? I have awful gums ,genetics were not my friend . Just before everything went tits up , I had eye wateringly expensive gum treatments. And , praise be , they have held ! So , check up and half clean this time and back next week for the rest . I’m very happy and will now be on the 6 month band wagon .

I go 6 monthly but sometimes 3 monthly if I’m having issues (tight gaps and history of ED). I brush twice daily with a Sonicare on the 3min cycle and 5000ppm toothpaste (on prescription), use interdental brushes at night and have a water flossed thing that I use occasionally (but prefer the brushes).

I've never been to a hygeinist and only just managed to get in to a dentist after COVID (moved shortly before COVID and never got round to registering before it all kicked off) I brush twice a day and floss daily so I think I'll be fine.

Yes I think some people are really lucky with their teeth and gums! And some not so much.

Probably a big group somewhere between the two as well.