Dental Appointments During the Pandemic

Many things have changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and lots of us have chosen to stay home or skip things like haircuts or eating dinner in a restaurant. Missing a dental appointment isn’t as easy as skipping a haircut or learning to cook your own Thai food at home. Your teeth need to be cleaned and inspected regularly to avoid gum disease and tooth loss, and to spot life-threatening cancers before they become a problem that cannot be treated.

While it’s important to get your regular checkups and cleanings, you might not know what a dental appointment looks like during the pandemic, and you may be worried about COVID-19 infection resulting from a hygienist working in your mouth for a significant period of time. Dental offices have implemented several precautions to protect both your safety as well as the safety of our staff, and we are happy to explain some of these safety guidelines to help you understand what to expect when you visit us.

The CDC recommends that dentists use screening measures for patients and employees for COVID-19 to be observed at all times. This means that in addition to checking your temperature and asking patients and employees to answer a series of questions to find out if they might be sick or have been in contact with anyone who may be infected, we also listen for coughing and other potential signs that someone is experiencing symptoms. That’s why you will be asked to stay in your car while we complete our screening procedures before you enter our building.

Our employees are required to be protected before they even greet you in the parking lot. Your hygienist will wear a gown and a hair covering, eye coverings, a mask (and often more than one mask to prevent any potential escape of saliva droplets), and gloves. You will also want to wear a mask until your hygienist asks that you to remove it. Your will be required to gargle a small amount of hydrogen peroxide for 60 seconds to protect our staff from your saliva while they work in your mouth. As always, instruments and equipment are completely sterilized after each use to ensure that patients cannot spread infection between each other.

Our staff is dedicated to making sure that you and your family are safe when you visit the dentist – it matters to our health and the health of our families, too! We encourage you to continue your regular dental care appointments, and we also want to emphasize that if you are experiencing pain, loose teeth, or unusual tooth sensitivity, you should contact us just like you would for any dental emergency. While you may choose to delay elective procedures like tooth whitening, the health of your mouth cannot be neglected. Minor problems that you ignore or wait to ask about could turn into disasters rather quickly.

Our goal is to keep your mouth healthy and safe throughout your life, and we encourage you to call us if you have any questions about or safety procedures or if you have any concerns about your mouth. We will be happy to discuss how COVID-19 affects your dental care and the way we help maintain it.