Professional Cleanings, Exams, and X-Rays
Portland, OR

Woman smiling sitting in chair at Hunter Dental Care in Portland, OR

Have you ever felt a pain in your mouth that makes you worry? It’s not much fun. For lots of people, when they feel something weird in their mouth is when they decide it’s time to see us, which is the right move! We want to remind you that we recommend you come in for a professional cleaning and examination at least once every six months so that you can avoid pains in your mouth. When we can stay up-to-date on what’s going on in your mouth, we can catch issues before they become serious, and hopefully, save a tooth or two in the process.

Digital X-rays

Depending on if you have had an X-ray taken this year, we may or may not start your regular visit for a cleaning and exam with an X-ray. We only need to take one X-ray of your mouth per year, so if you have already had one, you get to skip this step. At Hunter Dental Care, we use a digital X-ray machine that has some advantages over a traditional X-rays. For one, it exposes our patients to about one-fifth the amount of radiation that a traditional X-ray does. That keeps our patients happier and healthier.

Digital X-rays are also able to be viewed immediately because they work the same way digital cameras do. This means we get to skip the wait time that a traditional machine would require for developing the X-ray. We can view a high definition image of your X-ray with you on a computer monitor.

Professional Dental Cleaning

A professional dental cleaning involves getting all the stuff you might have missed over the last few months off of your teeth. When plaque and tartar are allowed to accumulate in hard-to-reach areas of your mouth, it often becomes quite difficult to remove them with normal brushing and flossing. For this reason, we use specialized tools that simplify and speed-up the process of plaque removal. The ultrasonic scaler is great for removing built-up plaque and tartar and works by combining a flow of water with ultrasonic vibrations. This combination results in microbubbles that create cracks in tartar and work to break it up and wash it away.

We will give your mouth a thorough brushing and flossing to make sure we haven’t missed anything and then finish this part of the appointment with a tooth polish. Polishing your teeth works to get rid of stains and it also smooths out the surface of your teeth, making it hard for plaque to gain purchase on your teeth.

Dental Examination

The final step in the appointment is to check your teeth for cavities and other oral maladies in the examination. During this time we examine your mouth for signs of problems such as:

•	Oral cancer
•	Tumors and cysts
•	Cavities
•	Gum disease
•	Tooth grinding (bruxism)
•	Teeth crack and chips

If we find issues, we will build a treatment plan for you and set up an appointment to treat the issue.

We will also ask if you are experiencing any pain within your mouth or jaw. During this time, we are checking for TMJ/TMD, a disorder that affects your temporomandibular joint.

Our office has a wide variety of preventative services, including fluoride treatment, oral cancer screening, and dental sealants. Ask about these services in your next appointment.

To setup you appointment please call us today at (503) 622-9730.

Location

1739 NE 122nd Ave
Portland, OR 97230-1914

Hours

Mondays & Tuesdays: 7 AM - 3 PM
Wednesdays & Thursdays: 8 AM - 5 PM
Fridays: Closed

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