Ten Things to Tell your Dentist on your next Dental Check Up

A trip to the dentist is certainly not something most people look forward to, however, you can keep the number of visits to a minimum by following the standard procedure of maintenance: brushing, flossing and dental check-ups every six months. 

Dental check-ups are what I wish to speak about in this article to ensure a good doctor - patient relationship. As in any relationship of worth, honest communication is essential. Honest communication tells me that you trust me as your dental professional and allows me to tailor your check-up to address your specific and individual concerns.

So, what TEN things do I need you to tell me, your dentist, when you arrive for your next dental check-up? 1. Provide name and phone number of your regular family physician, should I need to contact him. 2. Advise if you are allergic to any anesthetic medications I would be administering for routine dental work. 3. Make sure I am aware of diabetic disease, as this disease does increase the risk of gum disease, 4. Don't be afraid to say-you are afraid of me. I assure you, I won't take it personally. If you are afraid of a certain drill, or can't sit for too long a period and need to get up and stretch, or even that you prefer not to have an anesthetic for small cavities; I will try my best to accommodate by taking a break with drill periodically, allowing stretch breaks, and if possible I will not numb your tooth. 5. It's very important to let me know if you have any gum pain, bleeding gums while you are brushing, or you feel any bumps or lumps on wall of mouth or tongue or on gums. 6. Please share if you experienced sensitivity to hot or cold while you were eating. 7. If you are fortunate to have dental insurance that is wonderful, but don't be afraid to honestly share financial concerns regarding necessary treatment. The care of your teeth and mouth are important to me, and I will try to work out a payment schedule with you that is as painless as the treatment itself. 8. If in the course of treatment you are feeling something uncomfortable or unusual; do signal me and I will stop to talk about it. 9. For my female patients; tell me if you are pregnant and what trimester you are in. Hormonal changes in pregnancy can effect teeth and gums and I also need to weigh how x-ray treatment or other procedures might effect your unborn child. 10. If you are taking any anti-coagulants (blood thinning medication) I do need to know this, should bleeding occur in the repair of your teeth.  

Honest communication is essential to ensure a quality dental check-up, or to put it another way: "Be true to your teeth, or they will be false to you."