How often should I see my dentist?

Why are regular dentist appointments important?

You consider yourself to have great oral hygiene and regularly brush and floss your teeth to keep your mouth clean. Your excellent oral hygiene habits may lead you to wonder if you still need to visit your dentist on a regular basis. The answer is yes!  Even if you take good care of your teeth and gums at home, it’s still important that you regularly visit your dentist who is professionally trained to check for problems you may not see or feel yourself.

The truth is, many dental problems like cavities, gum disease, and oral cancer don’t become visible or cause pain until they are in the more advanced stage, which makes treatment and follow-up all the more extensive. Even if you are healthy today, your risk for dental disease can change over time and can be affected by factors like illness, diet changes, new medication usage, and more. So why risk it?

How often should I see my dentist?

The frequency at which you visit your dentist should be based on several factors. This includes your current oral health condition, individual oral hygiene habits, general health status and medical conditions, as well as your own self- and dentist-assessed risk for oral health problems.

Assessing your risk for dental disease

When evaluating your risk for dental disease, you should consider all personal health, lifestyle, and genetic factors that contribute to your risk-level. Risk factors include a diet high in sugar and refined carbohydrates, poor oral habits, lack of exposure to fluoride containing water, smoking or use of other tobacco products, heavy alcohol or recreational drug use, and medical conditions including diabetes, Sjogren’s Syndrome, and head and neck cancers.

Delta Dental offers a free online risk assessment tool called LifeSmile ScoreTM that helps you determine your level of risk for things like tooth decay, gum disease, and oral cancer. The tool prompts you with a series of questions about family history and current health status and habits and analyzes your answers to reveal your oral health risk score. You can then print your results and share them with your dentist who can factor those scores in with his or her clinical exam and help you develop a customized oral health plan and dental recall visit schedule.

Regularly scheduled visits

The evidence for the ideal interval for routine dental exams is not clear cut, but once or twice a year has been the general recommendation in the U.S. for many years. However, most people at low risk of oral diseases can visit the dentist less frequently, while others may need to go more often.

Your dental insurance coverage will also play a role in how often you see a dentist. Generally, two oral health exams will be covered by your dental insurance plan on an annual basis, but this will depend on your individual dental insurance plan. Remember – even if you believe your mouth to be in perfect health, you should still get a professional cleaning and annual checkup to ensure everything is healthy and on track!