The philosophy of the Santoro dental practice is to achieve the health of the oral cavity as soon as possible and to maintain this situation as long as possible. Given these premises we firmly believe in the importance of sharing with the patient the basic concepts of all those actions that prevent oral cavity diseases (prevention and prophylaxis concepts).
Commonly, the term prevention is used to define the actions and attitudes that make the onset of a disease more difficult (e.g. non-smoking and adopting a healthy diet are considered as preventative attitudes towards certain cancers).
In the oral cavity, the two most common diseases are caries and periodontal disease: both are caused by the presence of that whitish patina formed by saliva, food residues and bacteria present in the mouth called bacterial plaque. The proper attitude to prevent oral cavity infections will therefore create situations that hamper the presence of the bacterial plaque in contact with the dental elements and their supporting tissues. Therefore, preventive attitudes will be considered from childhood through the implementation of orthogonadodontic therapies so that the correct alignment of the teeth permits normal self-dissection mechanisms, instructing the child for proper oral hygiene and food education so that he learns how to wash his teeth, avoiding to eat immediately after hygiene, keeping long-lasting food debris in the oral cavity, getting used to undergoing regular professional hygiene sessions.
In a simpler way, the child who will need to follow orthognathodontic therapy, if he/she has the indication, must learn how to properly use toothbrush, toothpaste and dental floss, must perform these hygiene practices after the three main meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner), he must understand that it is necessary to take no more than three times a day food, he will have to favour non-carious foods (avoiding chocolates, candies, etc.) and must accept to be subjected to control sessions and professional hygiene.
Usually the prevention and prophylaxis terms are considered synonyms, but they are not. Prophylaxis, in fact, are actions that give the subject a specific defence against a morbid picture (the most common case of prophylaxis in medicine is vaccination). In dentistry, the most used prophylaxis techniques are: sealing the grooves by means of resinous materials so as to protect the tooth areas that are more easily cared for during the period of greater caries-receptivity (childhood and adolescence) dental and topical fluoride applications which is a mineral that reduces the subject’s caries-receptivity by providing specific protection to the dental enamel. In conclusion, to preserve the health of teeth and support tissues, it is necessary to combine the possibilities offered by prevention and prophylaxis: carry out orthodontic therapies if necessary, get used to the correct oral hygiene and food education, seal seals, professional hygiene sessions and topical fluoride treatments every three to six months in periods of greater caries-receptivity. All of our operators transmit these concepts to patients of all ages since we are sure that preventing, as well as considerable economic savings over time, also results in a healthier life.
