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Health

Dentist

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 20.11.2021
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A dentist is a specialist with a higher medical education who graduated from the Department of Dentistry in a medical school.

Each of us always wants to have a snow-white smile and a beautiful appearance of teeth. To achieve this, the dentist helps us. In each person periodically there is a need to visit a dentist - dentist. This can be both preventive regular examinations, and planned treatment of teeth and diseases of the mouth.

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Who is a dentist?

Depending on the specialization, there are such dentists - a children's dentist, a dental surgeon, an orthopedist dentist, an orthodontist, a periodontist, and also dentofacial surgeons belong to the category of dentists. Specialists include specialists with an average medical dental education - dental technicians, their essence is only in the manufacture of various types of prosthetic teeth, face, orthodontic and maxillofacial apparatus, the installation of which is already engaged in the dentist of a certain specialty. The dentist is a sufficiently requested specialist in the modern market of medicine and medical services, since each patient desires to get a "Hollywood smile".

When should I go to a dentist?

The people have developed in such a way that often people often turn to doctors when they "pripetchet", i.e. When the disease is already in either a neglected or acute stage. The same applies to visiting a dentist. Everyone knows that you need to visit the dentist regularly twice a year, regardless of the presence of complaints, as there may not be symptoms, and the disease can already progress. The dentist needs to be contacted when you notice the following symptoms:

  • the gums bleed after brushing their teeth,
  • there was a smell from a mouth,
  • you feel a gum on the gum,
  • the food began to constantly get stuck between the teeth (this may indicate that the teeth begin to loosen and "part"),
  • the onset of inflammation of the nasopharynx,
  • appeared white or vice versa, dark spots on the enamel.

Naturally, this is not the whole list of symptoms, after the occurrence of which it is necessary to contact the dentist. Therefore, a regular preventive visit to the dentist will help you prevent the development of any complex and dangerous diseases and prevent the progression of already obvious diseases.

What tests should I take when I visit a dentist?

There is not always an urgent need to take tests before going to the dentist, but when you have a tooth extraction or other surgical intervention, the doctor has the right to ask you for blood tests for HIV, hepatitis and other diseases that are transmitted by transmigration to protect yourself from potential infection. In addition, the doctor needs to know if you have the presence of diabetes, since this disease has a very negative effect on the ability to regenerate tissues in the postoperative period, and the platelet count in blood is very important in order to prevent blood loss at the time of surgery. But in any case, if you have a serious surgical intervention in the dental surgeon, you must first take a general blood test and, if necessary, make additional blood tests, sputum, etc.

What diagnostic methods does the dentist use?

It often happens that in order to make an accurate diagnosis or more carefully consider a clear problem, the dentist directs the patient to pass additional diagnostic methods. There are several basic and most popular diagnostic methods in dentistry: 

  • Profilometry - examination of the tooth with the help of a laser beam, which allows you to view the structure of the tooth by 5 mm in depth.
  • Rheodentography is a method of investigation that allows you to view the blood flow through the vessels and periodontal tissues.
  • Radiography is a method in which you can get a panoramic image of the tooth, jaws and nasal sinuses.
  • Computer tomography is a study in which it is possible to view the tooth and bone tissue through layers.
  • Luminescent diagnostics is a diagnostic method in which UV rays are directed to the teeth and mucous membranes of the oral cavity and thus healthy tissues change their natural color. With the help of this method, caries can be diagnosed at an early stage.

What does the dentist do?

The dentist is engaged in the treatment and prevention of diseases of the teeth, oral cavity and maxillofacial area. Depending on the dentist's qualifications, he is engaged in the following activities: 

  • The dentist-therapist conducts primary examination of patients, directs to additional methods of examination, diagnoses, conducts dental treatment, which is limited to the area of the dental office. 
  • Children's dentist treats diseases of infant teeth, as well as is engaged in the prevention of various diseases in the eruption of permanent teeth.
  • The dentist performs a variety of surgical procedures in the oral cavity and partially in the maxillofacial area. It is the dental surgeon that deals with the removal of teeth, the treatment and removal of various tumors, the opening of abscesses in the oral cavity, reconstructs and plasticizes the jaws, treats diseases associated with the maxillofacial region (diseases of the salivary glands, trigeminal nerve, etc.). 
  • The dentist-orthodontist specializes in the correction of congenital dental-jaw defects. The main category of orthodontists is children and adolescents with bite anomalies and abnormal position of teeth, but elderly people also turn to the orthodontist, in which the periodontal and chewing-speech apparatus changes occurred as a result of tooth loss. 
  • Orthopedic dentistry treats patients with defects and deformities of the chewing and speech device, which are caused by trauma or other damage. 
  • Maxillofacial surgeons are engaged in the treatment of diseases, defects and injuries of the head, neck and jaws. The range of their activities includes treatment and plastic correction of the consequences of traumatic injuries, correction of congenital defects and anomalies of the maxillofacial area, surgical correction of bite defects.

What diseases does the dentist treat?

To date, there are many diseases that are treated by a dentist. Depending on the qualification, dentists treat the following diseases: 

  • Dentists-therapists are engaged in the treatment of inflammatory diseases such as stomatitis, gingwit, glossitis, treat dental diseases, such as: caries, tartar, pulpitis, periodontitis, periodontitis. In addition, therapeutic dentistry treats salivary gland diseases, simple traumatic injuries to the tongue, lips, and jaws. 
  • Surgeons of dentists are engaged in tooth extraction and treat more complex diseases, such as abscesses and tumors of the oral cavity, are engaged in bone grafting and implantation of teeth, and perform operations on periodontal tissues. 
  • Orthodontists deal with the treatment of anomalies of the position and size of the jaws, anomalies in the ratio, size and shape of the dental arches and abnormalities in the development of the teeth. 
  • Orthopedic dentists are engaged in correcting anomalies resulting from trauma or illness. They are engaged in prosthetics of various kinds. 
  • Maxillofacial surgeons are engaged in the correction of both congenital and acquired defects. These include congenital cleft palate (in the people "hare lip" or "wolf mouth") as well as cosmetic correction of the maxillofacial area after traumatic injuries or transferred diseases.

Tips for a dentist

The dentist can give his patients a lot of useful advice and if you constantly adhere to them, then the need to regularly treat the teeth can fall away once and for all. 

  • Brush your teeth 2 times a day and use dental floss or brush for teeth.
  • Twice a year, pass a preventive examination at the dentist and carry out professional cleaning of teeth.
  • Every three months, change the toothbrush.
  • Preferably use toothpicks instead of toothpicks.
  • Eat fresh fruits and vegetables, they help to clean tooth enamel from a variety of plaque.
  • To strengthen your teeth, eat rich food for calcium (especially for children).
  • When a child has an incorrect bite, one should immediately contact the dentist to avoid further complications.
  • Do not get carried away by excessive teeth whitening, this can damage enamel and make it vulnerable.
  • Watch out for the temperature of the food you eat. Avoid sudden temperature changes.
  • If possible, after eating, rinse your mouth with mineral water.
  • If you have any pain in your teeth or gums, contact your dentist immediately.

Thus, we can conclude that the dentist in the modern world is a sufficiently requested specialist who specializes in the prevention and treatment of various kinds of dental and maxillofacial diseases. There are many varieties of dentists who, depending on their qualifications, work only with specific diseases. The circle of the dentist's work is very wide and implies high professional training.

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