When it comes to personal health, the dentist is perhaps one of the many checkboxes you have to tick – especially if you need to make sure you’re in tip-top shape. Fear of dentist drills and injections aside, checking up with a dentist every now and then is a smart move towards ensuring your health. Of course, meeting and talking with the dentist can be a bit overwhelming, and valuable time for consultation can be wasted when you don’t know what you need to talk with them about. Below you’ll find questions to ask the best Arlington dentist before seeing them, which you can also use to ask dentists in other areas to guarantee quite the pleasurable and satisfactory dental experience.

Dental Health Care: What Do Numbers Say?

Before you ask the questions below, however, perhaps it’s important to get a better understanding of the dental health scene in order to gain insight towards the importance of overall dental health care. According to the American Dental Association (ADA), 52.-percent of American adults had reported to have visited their dentists every half year for the past few years, with 15.4-percent reporting once-a-year consultation, with 11-percent reporting visits once every three years. Unfortunately, 21.3-percent said they hadn’t visited a dentist in the last few years.

Research suggests that adults cite a multitude of reasons to explain why they haven’t visited a dentist for a while. Some argue about the cost, their fear of the procedures and the dentist, or the lack of convenient dental health clinics and times. Unfortunately, even with these reasons at hand, there are still a lot of people with visible dental health problems that need consultation. For instance, as of 2009 to 2010, there’s a staggering 47.2-percent of adults over 30 that are in need of treatment for periodontal disease (gum disease). There’s also an estimate 16.7-percent, 26.5-percent, and 18.2-percent of seniors over 65, adults aged 19 to 64, and children aged 5 to 18, respectively, that have untreated caries.

If you’ve decided to finally visit the dentist such as Arlington Office – Dr. Keri Tran for a consultation, here some questions you can ask them:

Dental Health: What To Say Before Seeing A Dentist?

Given the above, it’s not new to appear a bit intimidated or overwhelmed when visiting the dentist. After all, if this is your first time visiting a new dentist in town, or your first time in a while visiting a dentist, the feeling can be a bit dreadful and frightening. However, don’t fret as here are some of the questions you shouldn’t forget to ask in order to get yourself a spotless appointment with your dentist:

• What experience do they have in the field and what conditions have they treated? It’s important to get a basic idea on the experience of the dentist you’re pushing to visit and the kind of conditions they’ve treated in order to get a good grasp on the skillset of the doctor handling you. This at least helps make sure that they’ve handled the kind of operation or procedure that is going to be done to you.
• What should you bring for the appointment? It’s important to ask your dentist just what you should do to prepare for the appointment in order to make sure there’s nothing that’s forgotten or procedures that are overlooked that might result to rescheduling or cancellation. All of us know how frustrating rescheduling appointments are given schedules, so understanding what documents you should bring and what they’re for can at least make sure you’re always prepared for your appointments.
• What should you do to prepare for the visit? Regardless of whether or not you need to have a special procedure done to your teeth, it’s important to at least be aware of preparations you need to make in order to make your appointment go smoothly. Should you brush your teeth in advance? Is there medicine you need to drink days prior to the appointment?
• What sort of procedure will be done to you, and what should you expect? If you’re expecting treatment to situations such as fillings, tooth whitening, fractured or chipped teeth, or even receding gums, it’s important to have a good idea as to what to expect during the procedure in order to mentally prepare yourself. Will there be injections? What sort of equipment will be used? The dentist going through the procedure as early as now can at least help stave off nervousness on the dentist’s chair, giving you and the dentist a more comfortable and focused time during the session.
• Where can you buy the particular medicine that will be prescribed, if there are any? Dentists sometimes ask you to buy particular medicine in order to treat pains or for other procedures. It’s important to ask right away if there are stores nearby that the dentist knows where the medicine they may prescribe is specifically being distributed. It’s also important to know if they know anyone who can give out a prescription so there are no hassles if they can’t prescribe the medicine to you.
• What other ways are there to reach the dentist? It’s important as early as possible to establish different means of contact in order to ensure that you have other ways of reaching your dentist. This can be via email or via another phone number. This at least allows you to have other means of communicating with your dentist if they’re suddenly out of reach.

The Bottomline: The Right Questions For The Right Dental Health

Dental health is perhaps one of the most important aspects of health one should prioritize – not just for its aesthetic purposes, but because of the kind of impact it has to our daily lives. After all, people rely on the digestive system to get nutrients to function everyday, and it all starts with the mouth. Taking care of dental health ensures there are no problems in terms of how your teeth grow and function, and how it relates to other organs such as the tongue and gums. Most importantly, a dentist can greatly help you achieve your various dental needs. Hopefully the questions to ask the best Arlington dentist before seeing them can give you insight towards the kinds of things you should be aware of prior to consultation. This doesn’t only apply to one specific region, but across all places as well.

Dr. Keri Tran

Dr. Keri Tran graduated from Texas A & M University and received her dental education from Baylor University. She spent two years in Dallas gaining valuable experience as an associate. Dr. Tran found that she loves working with children as well as adults and wanted a practice to cater to the needs of families. In order to provide the best care to her patients, Dr. Tran attends continuing education courses yearly in areas such as Cosmetic dentistry, Pediatric dentistry, Implantology and, her favorite, Orthodontics (Braces/Invisalign). She dedicates one full day a week just to her orthodontic patients because she loves the joy and satisfaction that these patients get once treatment is complete. And through her studies in healthcare, Dr. Tran also found an affinity for helping people. She is passionate about serving the community by volunteering for various causes, particularly advocating on children’s behalf, such as co-founding the Love 2 Yêu Global Youth Initiative (love2yeu.org). Away from work, Dr. Tran loves spending time with her family and friends and as long as she is outdoors, traveling or exploring something new she is happy! Dr. Tran and her team are committed to serving the Northern Virginia community through https://cherrydaledentistry.com/ with the best in cosmetic, general, pediatric & restorative dentistry. We cater to your specific needs, regardless of your situation, and use the latest in dental technology. We provide a holistic approach to dentistry to ensure all our patients have optimal dental health and wellbeing.