Dentistry

Dentistry is concerned with your dental health. It includes the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease and disfigurement in your mouth and oral area. It deals with diseases of your teeth, gums, and soft tissue of the mouth as well as the treatment and correction of jaw malformation, teeth misalignment, and birth conditions of the oral cavity such as cleft palate.

In addition to general practice, there are specific specialties. Examples of dental specialties include:

• Orthodontics – uses braces and corrective treatments to straighten misaligned or overcrowded teeth
• Endodontics – includes root canal treatments and other procedures and examinations of your inner tooth
• Periodontics – deals with gums and other tissues around your tooth such as gum disease and other gum ailments
• Prosthodontics - carries out simple and complex restorative work including repairing a dental or facial deformity such as missing teeth, congenital defect or trauma caused by an accident or injury, fitting dental implants and replacement teeth including dentures, crowns, bridges and veneers.
• Cosmetic dentistry - treatments designed to enhance your facial appearance such as veneers, crowns, implants, white fillings, composite bonding, teeth whitening, teeth straightening and gum contouring.
• Oral and maxillofacial surgery – treatments for a wide range of complex teeth, jaw and face conditions, such as cleft palate and other congenital deformities, impacted wisdom teeth, jaw problems including temporomandibular joint disorder, advanced gum disease, facial injury and a fractured jaw, sleep apnoea, oral cancer, and restorative work such as dental implants.

Dentists work with their patients to prevent and treat dental and oral disease, correct dental irregularities, and treat dental and facial injuries.

A dentist has many responsibilities. One of the most important is promoting good dental hygiene to protect and prevent your teeth and gums from decay and disease. Check-ups are a major part of a dentist’s job. They support your dental care as well as offer the opportunity to check the growth of your teeth and jawbones and to diagnose any problems early.

General dentistry involves treating problems of your gums, teeth, and mouth such as filling cavities, crowns, repairing or removing damaged teeth, taking and reviewing X-rays and tooth extractions as and when necessary.

A hospital dentist offers consultant advice and treatment for patients suffering from trauma or disease or who want aesthetic improvements. They may be a specialist in oral and maxillofacial surgery, orthodontics, restorative dentistry and/or cosmetic dentistry.

No, dentists are not all about teeth. They care for your oral health which includes your jaw and mouth. They look after their patient’s teeth and also their gums and jaw bones to treat oral diseases, conditions, and trauma.

The advice is to have regular dental check-ups to help maintain healthy teeth and gums. The frequency of your visits to a dentist will be based on your oral health.

Typically, people see their dentist every six months, but some people may not need to go so often and others may need more frequent checks.

If you are having dental treatment you can expect to see your dentist more frequently until the dental work is completed.

Clinical dentistry covers a large field of subspecialties, including implant dentistry, periodontology, and oral and maxillofacial surgery. The cost of a clinical dentistry with Ramsay Health Care UK will depend on your exact procedure, your dental requirements and preferences, and your chosen Ramsay hospital.

Following your consultation with a clinical dentist, you will receive a written cost quote. This quotation is guaranteed for 60 days and includes unlimited aftercare. 

Ramsay is recognised by all major medical insurers. Most schemes do not cover ordinary or cosmetic dental treatment but will cover you in a situation where you need to be hospitalised for treatment. This could include having your wisdom teeth removed or a broken jaw treated by a consultant oral and maxillofacial surgeon. We advise you to obtain written authorisation from your insurance provider before your procedure if you have medical insurance cover.

You may pay for your clinical dentistry using a dental insurance plan. They usually cover both routine and unplanned treatment. This may vary depending on your level of cover. You should consult your dental plan before your dentistry procedure.

We have a number of finance options to pay for your clinical dentistry. These include:

•            Interest-free finance – 0% interest, no deposit and affordable monthly instalments.

•            All-inclusive Total Care - one-off pre-agreed payment for access to all the treatment and aftercare you need for complete reassurance.

•            Pay as you go – flexible funding to pay for your treatment as and when costs arise.

The recovery process after seeing a dentist will depend on what you are seeing them for and the dentistry treatment they are providing.

For example, teeth whitening requires no recovery time. If you’ve had root canal treatment, you will need to avoid biting on hard foods until your treatment is complete and your restored tooth may feel painful for a few days which can be relieved with over-the-counter pain killers.

For people having their wisdom tooth or teeth removed, it can take up to two weeks to recover from the surgery. During this time, they may have a swollen mouth and cheeks, mildly visible cheek bruising, a stiff and sore jaw, pain and an unpleasant taste in their mouth.

After surgery for a fractured jaw, it can take around six weeks for your jaw to heal completely. During this time, your jaw may be painful for a few days to a couple of weeks. You will be advised to eat a soft diet and to keep your mouth clean to prevent infection.