Full Mouth Debridement

Prevention is the key to stopping any future dental problems.

At Family Dentistry of Upper Marlboro we assess the condition of a patient’s gums during the initial comprehensive exam. When patients have not had a regular dental check up in over six months and are not maintaining good brushing habits, it leads to lots of generalized visible buildup of tartar and calculus on the teeth. This buildup will also cause the gums to be swollen and bleeding.

The first step towards healthy gums and teeth is to remove all of this buildup in order to get to surface of the teeth to clean and polish them. This first step is called a full mouth debridement and is completed using an ultrasonic scaler. Once the heavy build up is removed, we will usually prescribe Chlorhexidine mouthwash to reduce the swelling of the gums. Then we have the patient return in a week to re-assess the gum to see if we can complete a normal dental cleaning. If we discover the presence of gum disease then we recommend deep scaling and root planing.