Over the COVID-19 pandemic, dental offices worldwide all closed down except for true, severe emergencies. As a result, families got behind on their dental care and preventative services, and some of them never went back for a checkup at all because of concerns over the risk of exposure.

This scenario, combined with wearing a mask all day, every day, led to additional complications. Dry mouth and mouth breathing are two of them, which then increased people’s risk of tooth decay and gingivitis. It created the perfect storm for advancing dental issues and painful, unexpected emergencies. 

What Happens When Preventative Care is Delayed

The best thing about preventative checkups and cleanings is that most dental problems can be prevented or even reversed if they’re caught early enough. If you already have an active issue such as tooth decay, it can be treated with a conservative filling before evolving into a situation that requires a crown or root canal.

At Paradise Dental Associates, we’re currently assisting families who are playing “catch up” after being away from the dentist over the COVID-19 pandemic. Fortunately for most of them, preventative care strategies and a little extra fluoride can go a long way! For others, we’re incorporating minimally invasive restorations or same-day treatments (such as CEREC crowns) to reduce the overall time in the dental office.

Protecting Our Patients

Paradise Dental Associates took special precautions to protect our patients, staff, and families during the COVID-19 pandemic, and those protocols continue today. 

• Surgically clean air (installed prior to the pandemic)
• Duramax Extra-Oral Suction System
• CrossTex – leading dental unit waterline treatment technology 

We exceed ADA and CDC guidelines for patient and staff safety to ensure everyone can get “back to normal” with as few inconveniences as possible. Safety and infection control has always been one of our priorities, so these adjustments and protocols were no burden to our team whatsoever. We’re helping reduce the spread of infection by using resources like hospital-grade disinfectants on all surfaces, staggering our patient appointments for fewer interactions with third parties, wearing masks throughout the office, and reducing the production of aerosols during planned procedures.

The Added Perk of Scheduling Treatment Now

For our patients who are considering treatment you’ve been putting off, major smile reconstruction, or cosmetic treatment, right now is a great time to begin the transformation process. Why? For one, it helps limit future larger dental issues down the road, but it’s also still fairly common to see people out and about wearing masks if you’re sporting one between dental visits or even working from home where no one will see you! 

The Real Risk (to Your Smile)

Thanks to quality PPE, and special practices to reduce the spread of infection, the real risk of not visiting the dentist’s office is dental disease. Even one small cavity can develop into a severe abscess, potentially putting your overall health at risk.

Delaying dental care allows for small infections to expand into larger, more severe issues that require additional time (and money) to treat. Whereas intercepting them earlier ensures modest treatments that preserve as much healthy tooth structure as possible. All while lowering your financial investment in your oral health.

It’s Time to Get Back on Track

Our Salem dental team is committed to providing a safe environment for all patients so that you can keep your smile healthy for life. Consistent infection control procedures allow us to provide uninterrupted care to our patients. Additionally, we have no plans to modify these changes, as we believe it allows us to provide uninterrupted care, even in the instance that someone is asymptomatic.

If you have questions or concerns about our safety precautions or infection control procedures, please feel free to call our office. And if it’s been six months or longer since your last dental checkup—or, in the case of a pandemic, more than two years—then it’s time to visit Paradise Dental Associates today!