During your dental cleaning visits, the dentist will always evaluate your overall dental condition.

This will be accomplished by way of evaluating radiographs, periodontal probings and clinical exams. Severity of the patients overall periodontal status is based on the amount of bone loss and the amount of bacteria built up on the tooth called calculus. If the calculus buildup presence is significant enough to where a normal cleaning will not remove it, scaling and or root planning may be necessary.

Dental scaling occurs with manual hand instruments and ultrasonic instruments. The ultrasonic scaling device is used to eliminate plaque bacteria with sonic vibrations. The ultrasonic scaling device removes calculus, plaque and biofilm from the teeth surfaces and underneath the gum line.

A manual instrument may then be used to remove the remainder. Root planing involves detailed scaling of the root surface to decrease inflammation of the gum tissue and to smooth out rough target areas, eliminating plaque and biofilm development.