Author: forestwooddentistry

You may be wondering why a dentist took your blood pressure at a routine cleaning or prior to a dental procedure.

In recent years, many dentists, especially oral surgeons, have begun to take their patients’ blood pressure as a best practice.

Known as the ‘silent killer,’ hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a cause of about 60,000 deaths per year. Hypertension affects about 30% of Americans and often goes unnoticed because it is asymptomatic in most cases.

For many individuals, maintaining routine cleanings at the dentist is more common than visiting their physician for annual physicals and wellness testing. Dentist appointments are a unique opportunity to serve as a wellness to check this subject every six months. Adding this service to a dental visit allows dentists and patients to have a baseline of their blood pressure in just a few moments.

Continue reading “Why Does My Dentist Take My Blood Pressure?”

Right now, my job consists of pulling a lot of teeth, wisdom tooth extractions, and other oral surgery procedures. The question I get most is “is this going to be painful,” and understandably so.

Many patients have a fear of the unknown, coupled with dental anxiety or fear of the dentist. That’s why I always remind them that if something is painful, something is wrong. A lot of procedures are sedation extractions or have local numbing anesthetics, so patients shouldn’t really feel anything more than discomfort.

Continue reading “Will My Dental Procedure Be Painful?”

What are the Benefits of Flossing?

How many times has your hygienist asked if you are flossing regularly, and you respond yes, even though you know you’ve only flossed twice in advance of this appointment? More than half of Americans don’t floss regularly and 20% don’t floss at all.₁

Most people view flossing as an annoying chore. I get it, we all are tired at night and that extra step seems like it takes forever! But the trick is that it doesn’t matter what time of the day you floss. The key to success is flossing consistently day after day. Even if you mess up a day here or there, flossing more days than not is what will keep your mouth healthy.

Continue reading “Hate Flossing? These 5 Things Will Change Your Mind”