Patient Care

Whether you’re a dental hygienist, dentist, or assistant, dealing with patients who have negative attitudes can be quite frustrating. Raising of voices, a rude comment, or a sarcastic tone of voice from a patient can make what would have otherwise been a pleasant interaction so much more tiresome to deal with. Luckily for you, there are ways to completely turn...

According to the United States Census Bureau, by the year 2030, every baby boomer in the United States will be over the age of 651. Why is that fact important to us as Dental Hygienists? It is extremely significant, considering a ballooning geriatric population, 78 million by the year 2035 to be exact, will make up a significant portion...

Disclosure: We value transparency at Today’s RDH. This article is sponsored content from Tokuyama Dental America as part of our sponsored partner program. A familiar problem Dentinal hypersensitivity is a common pain that is estimated to occur in approximately 15% to 20% of all dental patients. It is widely accepted that in almost all cases, this sensitivity is caused by rapid fluid movement...

As a dental hygienist, I consider myself a preventive oral healthcare specialist. Dental hygienists are one of the few healthcare providers with the primary goal of preventing disease - not just treating it. We have an entire arsenal of preventive procedures we can offer our patients which ultimately leads to reduced cost and discomfort by reducing restorative treatment needs....

Note: This is Part 1 of Debbi Viger's series, Special Needs: Everyone Has Special Needs All of us are special in some way and require adjustments to our treatment and our daily life. Let’s just embrace that concept for a moment, take a deep breath and strive to create excellence for ourselves and our patients. So often we read in blogs...

Note: This is Part 3 of Debbi Viger’s series, Special Needs: Everyone Has Special Needs. Read Part 1 here and Part 2 here. Why do some patients have such a difficult time wrapping their head around the difference between a traditional, preventive “cleaning” and treatment for disease? Every hygienist goes through this at some point, trying desperately to explain prophylaxis vs....

Tooth decay is no stranger to the dental professional. In fact, it isn’t a stranger to most! According to a study done by the CDC, 1 out of every five children aged 5-11 and 1 of 7 adolescents aged 12-19 have dental decay. However, children are not the only ones who suffer from dental decay. According to the CDC,...

Let’s travel back a few years, okay a few decades, to my first dental appointment. A state ran facility had established itself a little over a mile from my childhood home. I remember arriving that day, and the first thing that greeted me was a wad of blood-soaked gauze on the sidewalk outside. I remember starring in horror, but...

Early childhood caries (ECC) is one of the most common chronic childhood diseases, and possibly the most preventable. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) defines ECC as a significant chronic disease resulting from an imbalance of multiple risk and protective factors over time1. In the United States, 3-6% of children under the age of 6 are affected by...

The United States has a growing demographic of older adults, those 65 years of age and older, who are increasingly becoming a large part of dental practices. Dental professionals can play an integral part in helping this population to overcome physical, cognitive, and environmental changes; including challenges in relation to their oral health that they may face with aging....