Preventive Care in Elk Grove, CA

Protecting Your Teeth Today — For a Lifetime of Healthy Smiles

No matter how old you are, preventive dental care is crucial for maintaining a healthy smile. When you practice proper oral hygiene at home and visit Wackford Dental for routine visits, you’re working to make sure your smile will remain healthy and attractive for years to come.

Plaque and tartar feed the bacteria that cause tooth decay and gum disease. That’s why we offer these useful tips for avoiding plaque and tartar buildup:

• Brush your teeth with a soft-bristled toothbrush twice a day using fluoride toothpaste. You’ll also want to brush your tongue to remove any excess food particles and keep your breath smelling fresh.
• Floss at least once a day. This will prevent decay by removing plaque and food particles in places that your toothbrush can’t reach.
• Antibacterial mouthwash fends off harmful bacteria.
• Eat a balanced diet. While we recommend avoiding sugary foods, we don’t expect you to entirely eliminate them. Instead, try introducing more nutritious foods into your diet, such as vegetables, yogurt, cheese, and fruit.
• Stay up-to-date with routine dental checkups by visiting Wackford Dental at least once every six months. During your visit, you’ll receive a professional cleaning and Dr. Elsemary or Dr. Salem will use advanced diagnostic tools to make sure your smile is healthy.

Early Cavity Detection With DIAGNOdent

DIAGNOdent is a cavity screening device that allows our dentists to detect even the smallest signs of tooth decay and cavities. That way, we can restore your smile while preserving as much of your tooth as possible. This saves you both time and money.

DIAGNOdent screenings are quick and painless, helping us ensure that your smile stays healthy for years to come. DIAGNOdent works by scanning your mouth using laser technology. By measuring the fluorescence within each tooth, our dentist can spot cavities on, between, or around your teeth. The entire process just takes a few minutes.

Early Cancer Detection With VELScope® Screening

Each year, more than 53,000 Americans are diagnosed with oral cancer. The earlier we can identify cancer, the more effectively we can treat it. With the help of the VELScope oral cancer screening, we can diagnose and treat oral cancer early, improving the patient’s five-year survival rate by about 80 to 90 percent.

The following risk factors dramatically increase a patient’s risk of contracting cancer:

• Tobacco use (E.g., cigarettes, cigars, and chewing tobacco)
• Frequent alcohol consumption
• Genetics
• Overexposure to the sun

Dr. Elsemary and Dr. Salem use the VELScope system that features a specialized light which makes it easy to view your oral tissues. Under this special light, abnormal tissue will be immediately apparent to your dentist.

If we discover anything out of the ordinary, we’ll make sure you get the correct diagnosis and treatment. In most cases, abnormal tissue is not a sign of cancer.