Dental Hygiene

Laser. The word sounds scary if it isn’t understood. A laser produces a narrow and intense beam of light energy which can be used to treat a wide range of dental conditions. For a hygienist, the laser is an effective and comfortable way to decontaminate periodontal pockets, help treat gingivitis, remove necrotic tissue, or treat an annoying canker sore....

quip, a dental health start-up which has sold over a million of its electric toothbrushes since 2015, has recently received $40 million in funding. With equity financing from Sherpa Capital and debt financing from TriplePoint Capital, this latest round brings quip's total funding to around $60 million. Their hope is that this new round of funding will allow them...

Not many people like going to a dental office, whether it’s because of the amount of time that is spent or because of dental anxiety. Therefore, as dental hygienists, we try our very best to ensure that each patient has a smooth time in the office and our patients feel comfortable. However, there are a few things that patients...

Do you remember the spring semester your freshman year of dental hygiene school? Filled with lingering instrumentation competencies, the anticipation of seeing your first REAL patient? As an educator, each spring when I teach polishing, students are just thrilled. They love it, and it is FUN for them! Polishing is FUN, but depending on when and where you received...

We have all heard our fair share of myths growing up. My favorite myth my parents tried to sell me was a spin-off of the myth, “eating carrots improves your eyesight.” When I was a child, my favorite television show was Wonder Woman (it still is, if I’m being honest). At this time Lynda Carter was the star of...

Article sponsored by quip. Studies show that children who start developing habits at an early age are more likely to keep these habits through adulthood. This can be beneficial if the habits they are forming are healthy, like brushing for two minutes twice a day and getting comfortable visiting the dentist and hygienist regularly. On the other hand, unhealthy habits can...

Since periodontal disease is a chronic complex disease affecting 47% of the adult population in the United States,1 we know that treatment of the periodontium with an eye on oral-systemic links is an important focus. Proper nutrition should not be neglected as it plays an intricate role in the control of periodontal disease. The good news is that a huge...

Earning the title RDH is no easy task, and you can ask any graduate, surviving the 2-3 years of dental hygiene school is a rite of passage. Yet, on this journey, some want more after a few years of clinical practice and have taken the path to higher education to complete a bachelors or master’s degree. I have worn...

It is a typical Monday morning, and your eight o’clock patient is running late, medical history needs to be updated, due for radiographs, annual full-mouth probing due, periodontal maintenance scheduled, and a doctor exam. Whew, that’s a lot to start the morning. As you begin the appointment, you work efficiently and as quickly as you can to get back...

Sometimes it feels like we need a code red to determine which code best suits our patient’s particular dental condition. I am sure we have all been there. Do we use D4355 for Debridement or just start with D4341 or D4342? Do I use the Gingivitis code D4366 or just fight through a Prophylaxis with the D1110 code and...