Dental Hygienist - really necessary?

koan_2

pollypenny

My dentist went from saying my teeth are so good that he can't even clean them to see the hygienist every three months. He was new to the practice, surprise surprise.

I did go, after I broke a tooth, lost a filling, then had an infection resulting in an extraction.

However, the hygienist poked about for a bit, come again in 3 months, £30 please.
No polish.

I've seen him three times now, but not at all impressed and, like the OP, wondering if it's necessary.

HKitten

A hygienist can be a great idea if needed, but considering the amount of unnecessary treatment your dentist was trying to sell you on, I would get a second opinion before you book anything.

Toothsmith

HKitten wrote: »

A hygienist can be a great idea if needed, but considering the amount of unnecessary treatment your dentist was trying to sell you on, I would get a second opinion before you book anything.

My thoughts exactly!

jerryTT

If you believe that your teeth are just fine then you no need to go for other dental treatments (braces or new crown). I would recommend you to see a hygienist so that you can receive proper report of your oral health condition and learn oral hygiene tips.

terra_ferma

jerryTT wrote: »

I would recommend you to see a hygienist so that you can receive proper report of your oral health condition.

that's what I pay my dentist for, I get annual check ups for that, it's not a hygienist job.

anotheruser

Maybe go to the hygienist once.

I didn't go to the dentist for about 25 years and went through about 3/4 of those surviving on a lot of cola and what not. I also went through a period of brushing them once a week, maybe.

However he complimented my teeth and was impressed I had no fillings and only one out (which came out when I was really young).

He recommended I went to the hygienist, but a friend who went to the same dentist said they did that every time.
I took advice from her, she cleared out a huge amount of plaque, which I notice always builds, despite what I do.

So now I bought one of these and clean it out every so often myself, thus I only would visit and get a proper clean once a year, if that, despite what the dentist recommends.