Oral hygiene

Our dental hygienist

At North Street Dental, Dudley, West Midlands our dental hygienist is an invaluable member of our clinical team and has a particular interest in dental health care and oral hygiene. We use preventive dental therapies, treating on-going problems such as gum disease and also educating patients on how best to care for their teeth.

Why should I see the hygienist?

The hygienist’s primary work is to prevent and treat gum disease. It will include professionally cleaning your teeth by removing plaque and tartar – we all know it as having a scale and polish.

Our hygienists will also advise patients on the best way to keep teeth free of plaque. Plaque is a sticky coating that constantly forms on your teeth. Untreated, it will allow bacteria to flourish and compromise not only the health of teeth but potentially general wellbeing.

More on the hygienist’s role

Everyone is familiar with the scale and polish – the deep cleaning of teeth – but hygienists do much more.

Dental hygienists can read X-rays and help with the diagnosis of oral problems. Hygienists can undertake treatments such as applying teeth sealants to help avoid decay in children, closed root planing (below the gum line cleaning of teeth) and root debridement, another form of cleaning deep down into the tooth bed.

Our hygienist will also help slow the advances of gingivitis and periodontal disease, the single most significant cause of adult tooth loss in the UK.

Our dental hygienist Sophie Mae at work

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Preventative dentistry

The professional cleaning of teeth to remove plaque and tartar, combined with looking after your teeth and gums properly at home, will help keep your mouth healthy. This preventative dentistry of the hygienist as part of a structured programme of care will help ensure we keep invasive treatment to a minimum.

What about children?

Children should also see our hygienist, who may advise the application of fluoride varnish to help prevent decay. Permanent, or ‘adult’ back teeth can also benefit from having the biting surfaces sealed.

Will hygienist’s treatment hurt?

A Scale and polish is usually pain-free. If, however, you should experience any pain during treatment, you must make the hygienist aware of your discomfort. Topical anaesthetic sprays and creams, or local anaesthesia can help.

Oral hygiene is a key part of preventative dentistry

Top tips to better oral hygiene

There are many oral health care products out there, including specialist kinds of toothpaste, power toothbrushes, and mouthwashes. We stock a range of oral hygiene products in our Dudley practice, and our dental hygienist will recommend those that are best for you.

We advise you to follow four simple steps to help keep your teeth and gums healthy:

Brush your teeth with a good quality fluoride toothpaste the last thing at night and at least one other time during the day.
Cut down on sugary foods and drinks.
Join our dental plan to ensure you are properly monitored and cared for.
If you’re a smoker, consider quitting.

Top tips to better oral hygiene – less sugar

Direct access to hygienist

We can now offer same-day appointments with our hygienist and therapist Sophie. In a 45-minute appointment at our clinic in Dudley, West Midlands, you’ll get an oral assessment, scale and polish and a smile care lesson. Call the practice on 01384 254 067 or drop us a note through our contact form and we will arrange your session.

We also have a wealth of knowledge and tips on oral health on our blog page. Bookmark it and check back regularly as we update often. We go into detail with some great pointers on keeping your smile in tip-top condition.

Another great source of information is over on our Facebook page.

Dental hygienist and therapist Sophie Mae BSc GDC 264333

Dental hygiene key to keeping smiles

Our dental hygienist and therapist Sophie Mae BSc GDC 264333 is an invaluable member of our clinical team. She has a particular interest in dental health care and oral hygiene.

Using preventive dental therapies, treating on-going problems such as gum disease and educating patients on how to clean teeth properly, her work is central to any smile maintenance and the well-being of our patients.

Speak to our hygienist Sophie Mae for oral hygiene advice

Sophie loves children and has already established herself as a practice favourite with our young dental patients at North Street Dental here in Dudley in the West Midlands.

Her scope of practice is under the prescription of our dentists and she is also able to see referral patients.

It may surprise you to know that, under the General Dental Council edict, she has far more skills than just delivering a scale and polish, the most common of therapies people associate with her clinical role.

But Sophie and people like her are qualified to do more – much more.

Our hygienist’s scope

As a dental hygienist and dental therapist, Sophie is able to deliver treatment plans within her competence and evaluate medical history. She can take and interpret radiographs and provide preventive oral health care to patients. Sophie may complete periodontal examinations and charting and use indices to screen and monitor periodontal disease. She can take intra and extra-oral photographs and carry out oral cancer screening and referrals.

Additional clinical scope includes administering anaesthesia, carrying out the removal of the soft tissues inside a tooth on primary teeth. Sophie can take impressions, extract primary teeth and place crowns on primary teeth. She can undertake supragingival and subgingival scaling and root surface debridement, place temporary dressings and re-cement crowns with temporary cement.

She is able to carry out tooth whitening under the prescription of a dentist, apply fissure sealants and carry out simple fillings on children and adults.

Of course, Sophie is also qualified to use appropriate anti-microbial therapy to manage plaque-related diseases and apply topical treatments. She can also offer help and advice on how to stop smoking.

Had an appointment with Sophie and her Dental Nurse, it was stress free, I am an anxious patient, teeth and gums thoroughly checked, then a clean and polish which left my teeth lovely and clean. Sophie updated me in language I could understand all her findings. Fabulous service throughout my appointment by all the staff at North Street Dental.

Christine F

Been going to North Street dentist for years and they are the only dentist I feel comfortable with. Great service, my daughter also goes. Sophie has been excellent with her and they have gained her trust over the years. I personally think they are very reasonable on price too. Everyone is friendly, place is spotless. Wouldn’t go anywhere else.

Kelly C

Today I had an appointment with the hygienist, Sophie, to have my teeth cleaned. The service was excellent, everyone was following Covid protocols and the surgery was spotless. My teeth feel amazing now, highly recommend.

Bethe D

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