What are Sealants?
Sealants are used to fill in narrow or intricate grooves in teeth that cannot be cleaned adequately by brushing. In some cases, cavities and plaque will build up in these areas, not due to neglect, but because the bristles are not fine enough to cover these areas.
To prevent this, a dentist will coat the sealant in these grooves and crevices, making it possible and easy to brush plaque in all areas of your mouth to prevent further issues and help protect against tooth decay in posterior teeth.
What can you expect from the sealants’ procedure? Within just a few minutes, our dentist will clean the tooth and prepare its occlusal surface (or the top surface that comes in contact with other teeth) with a solution that allows the sealant to adhere stronger to teeth for more durable protection. The sealant is then applied to the tooth and is hardened with a curing light. And that’s it! Just one appointment to improve dental health dramatically.
After the sealant has hardened, you can brush and eat normally, now with a protective shield around your molars, premolars, and other teeth used to chew. That sealant shield will keep bacteria out of those impossible-to-reach crevices so you don’t have to get more fillings in the future.
Why Should I Get Sealants?
Sealants are not as much of a necessity for adults with developed teeth, but are recommended more often for children whose permanent teeth have recently erupted. Sealants can:
- Help children maintain good dental health early on, for less dental health problems in adulthood
- Protect against tooth decay in posterior teeth
- Prevent more cavities, teeth weakening and additional dental health complications
- Save you money by not having to pay for those procedures to fix dental decay!
The more you can protect your children’s teeth, the better. By protecting teeth from bacteria and decay now, less dental work will be needed later in life. Nearly 90% of molar occlusal surface cavities can be prevented by a simple, but powerful sealant.
Contact Meridian Dental in Wasilla AK to learn more about the benefits of sealants for both children and adults.
When Should I Get Sealants?
Knowing how helpful sealants can be for your dental health, when would be the right time to get them? In most cases, the sooner the better! We have fewer cases where adults receive sealants, but they are a good course of action for adult teeth with greater probability for decay.
Sealants can be especially helpful for children whose molars and other back teeth have erupted within the last year or last two years. This is a vulnerable time for teeth as they mature, so protecting against decay and bacteria growth is even more vital in these areas where food can get stuck easily.
But even primary teeth that are prone to decay may also need sealants so that they don’t fall out sooner than they should, causing later problems for permanent teeth. Meet with our family dentist in Wasilla AK to discuss whether sealants are the best option for your children’s teeth and at what time.
Because they don’t last forever, patients eventually will need to replace any sealants they want every few years. Sealants can last for about 10 years, but may chip or wear down before that time. Scheduling regular appointments with your dentist will help keep sealants in check and know when to replace them.
Call Us for Dental Sealants in Wasilla
Keep your teeth healthy and protect them against cavities and tooth decay with help from dental sealants! Contact Meridian Dental today for more information or to schedule an appointment to receive sealants from our friendly dental office in Wasilla AK.
