Dental cleaning, commonly known as tooth washing, is a professional term for supragingival scaling, which refers to the removal of dental plaque, dental plaque and stains on the gums by scaling instruments, polishing the tooth surface and delaying the re-deposition of dental plaque and calculus. Plaque and calculus are the most important local stimulating factors of periodontal disease, and scaling is the most effective method to remove supragingival plaque and calculus.
Plaque is the chief culprit of periodontal disease, which will re-form on the tooth surface after being removed. Plaque removal is not in place, and mineral salts in saliva gradually deposit, which will form tartar over time. The existence of tartar makes the plaque closely contact with the tissue surface, which causes the inflammatory reaction of periodontal tissue. In addition, the porous structure of dental calculus is easy to absorb a large number of bacterial toxins, and dental calculus will also hinder brushing. If it is not removed for a long time, it may cause gingivitis, periodontitis, gingival bleeding, bad breath, and finally lead to tooth loosening or even falling off. After tartar is formed, it cannot be removed by brushing. According to the different positions of dental calculus deposition, it can be divided into supragingival dental calculus and subgingival dental calculus based on the gingival margin. As the name implies, tooth washing is mainly responsible for removing supragingival calculus, but in practice, shallow subgingival calculus connected with supragingival calculus should also be removed.
As a result of eating some food and colored drinks, some pigments will accumulate on the teeth. In people who smoke for a long time and like to drink dark drinks, the deposition of pigment is particularly obvious, which has a great adverse effect on the appearance of teeth. These pigments will also be removed during gingival scaling. However, because the tooth surface is not as smooth as a mirror, it is impossible to completely remove the pigment, and some pigment will always remain in the concave part of the tooth surface.
Polishing is a necessary step to clean teeth. After scaling, it is necessary to smooth the tooth surface with a rubber cup and a polishing paste to slow down the adhesion of plaque and the formation of tartar.
The main purpose of tooth cleaning is to prevent and treat oral diseases, not just to look good. By washing teeth, gingivitis can be relieved.
Inflammation of periodontitis, but it can't be cured by washing teeth alone. To eradicate periodontal disease, further professional treatment should be carried out after tooth washing.