Most of the necessary work to avoid tooth decay and periodontal disease takes place at home. Brushing and flossing is your best line of defense against dental problems, but you still need some assistance. Professional dental cleaning is a standard part of your regular dental checkups, but not all aspects of this professional cleaning are suitable for all patients. If you're affected by cancer, can your teeth be professionally cleaned?
Chemotherapy
Unless the cancer is located in your mouth, head, or neck, the illness itself won't necessarily interfere with professional teeth cleaning, but your chemotherapy might. Chemotherapy can trigger immunosuppression, in that your immune system is compromised as a temporary feature of your treatment. Because of this, any type of invasive medical procedure should be delayed, and this can even cover something that's minimally invasive, such as dental cleaning.
Restricted Treatment
This is not to say that your dentist will automatically refuse to clean your teeth as part of your checkup, but the approach must be modified. This might involve restricted treatment, with your dentist limiting your treatment to supragingival cleaning, which focuses on removing plaque and calculus from the visible sections (above the gum line) of your teeth only.
More Invasive Treatment
Other aspects of professional cleaning are more invasive, such as subgingival cleaning, which is the removal of plaque and calculus from beneath the gum line. Root planing (the removal of bacteria from a tooth's roots) is also amongst the more invasive parts of professional cleaning, and your dentist might recommend that these parts of the process are delayed.
An Informed Decision
If there's any doubt about your ability to receive a professional cleaning, you must discuss this with your dentist. In any event, your dentist will need to know the details of your cancer and your treatment, so that they don't inadvertently perform any process that can impede your treatment. The nature of your cancer and the timing of your chemotherapy will influence your dental care, with particular attention paid to the date when you ceased chemotherapy. This all allows you and your dentist to make an informed decision about the level of care that's suitable. If there should still be some confusion, you may wish to ask your physician or oncologist about which dental procedures are safe in your particular circumstances.
Not all of the standard parts of the dental cleaning process are suitable for someone affected by cancer, but you and your dentist can determine the best way forward. For more insight, contact clinics like Family Dentistry Of Woodstock.
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