When To Get A Hygiene Session, And Can It Be Bad For Your Teeth?

“I would like to know at what age a hygiene session with plaque and tartar removal becomes necessary, and if you are already getting them (I understand you are supposed to get one every six months), can they harm your teeth? I am 29 years old. Thank you in advance for your reply! Regards, Ildikó”

Removal of tartar becomes necessary at the age when tartar starts to show up. Although rare, children as young as 4-5 years old can already have tartar build up. Tartar buildup necessarily leads to periodontitis, and one of the aims of a hygiene session is the prevention of periodontitis. Whether you are 5 or 25 or 105, it does not matter, the only thing that matters is whether or not you have tartar or not.

Tartar is made up of food detritus, it is the calcified remains of the plaque from your teeth and saliva. Its surface is rough, and provides an ideal place for bacteria to live in. The gums react to the presence of plaque and tartar by becoming inflamed, so as to not let the material invade the tooth roots. This inflammation is periodontitis, and will produce immune responses that will actually negatively affect the teeth, and start to break them down, along with the jawbone. This will eventually lead to gum recession, and possibly necrosis of the jaw.

If tartar is allowed to stay on your teeth for an extended period of time, it will cause necrosis of the jaw, recession of  the gums, and can lead to loosening and eventual loss of teeth. To avoid these biological consequences, dental hygienists and dentists as well recommend a hygiene session every six months.

The rate at which one accumulates tartar varies from patient to patient. You can slow down the accumulation of tartar with rigorous at home oral care, but even with great oral care, you may accumulate tartar faster than expected. How often you should go for a hygiene session depends on your rate of accumulation- your dentist will be able to give an accurate estimate, though.

Removal of plaque and tartar happens via ultrasonic methods nowadays, and the ultrasonic treatment does not harm the enamel, as it does not touch it at all. Tartar and plaque are much softer than tooth enamel, and thus the ultrasonic vibrations literally shake the detritus off, but your enamel remains intact.         

Clinics that deal with hygiene sessions professionally will also have Air brush and other polishing techniques besides the usual scalers and tartar removal methods. This is important not just because of aesthetic reasons, but because of hygiene, too. Polishing makes the tooth surface smooth, and bacteria are thus unable to live on its surface, and plaque and tartar have a harder time sticking to it as well.

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