1. What is dental cavity or dental caries meaning?
Permanently damaged areas in teeth that develop into tiny holes.
2. What are most common symptoms of dental caries or dental cavities?
There may be no symptoms. Untreated cavities can cause toothache, infection and tooth loss.
3. What are most common causes of dental caries or dental cavities ?
Causes include bacteria, snacking, sipping sugary drinks and poor teeth cleaning.
4. How to Prevent onset of dental caries or dental cavities?
Oral hygiene is the practice of keeping one's mouth clean and free of disease and other problems by regular brushing of the teeth and cleaning between the teeth. It is important that oral hygiene be carried out on a regular basis to enable prevention of dental disease and bad breath.
5. How to mantain good oral hygiene?
Here are some general oral hygiene instructions to keep your smile healthy:
1 - Brush your teeth at least twice a day. Use fluoride toothpaste and a soft-bristled toothbrush.
2 - Floss once daily.
3 - Brush your tongue.
4 - Use an antibacterial mouthwash every day.
5 - Visit your dentist regularly.
6 - Avoid smoking and other tobacco products.
6. How does fluoride affect cavities?
Fluoride prevents tooth decay by making the enamel more resistant to the action of acids. Fluoride helps to accelerate the buildup of healthy minerals in the enamel, further slowing the occurrence of decay. Studies even show that in some cases, fluoride can stop already started teeth decay.
7. What is disease prevalence or occurance of dental caries in India?
Very common.
More than 10 million cases per year. (India)
Treatable by a medical / dental professionals.
Requires a medical diagnosis like X rays, Heat and Cold tests.
Lab tests or imaging often required like dental CBCT Scans.
8. Where does dental caries start? or clasify types of dental caries.
Caries can appear in three forms called occlusal, interproximal caries and Smooth surface caries.
1 - Occlusal caries form on the area on top of the tooth and are easy to spot.
2 - Interproximal caries develop in between teeth and may be unnoticed in the initial stages.
3 - Smooth surface caries may develop on any smooth surface on tooth which is facing lips or tongue.
9. What are Stages of dental caries or dental cavities?
1- Initial caries, caries in the spot stage or, as it is also called “white caries”. At this stage, a matte light spot is formed on the enamel surface at the place of enamel demineralization.
2 -Superficial caries.
3 - Medium caries.
4 - Deep caries.
10. What foods cause dental caries?
1 - Sugary food and drinks are one of the main causes of tooth decay.
2 - Sugar in food and drinks.
3 - cakes and biscuits.
4 - sweets and chocolate.
5 - flavoured milks and yoghurts.
6 - sugary breakfast cereals and cereal bars.
7 - jams.
8 - fruit canned in syrup.
9 - sauces and syrups, such as some pasta sauces, marinades and ketchup.
11. What is the difference between dental cavity and dental caries?
The only difference between the two terms is that dental caries is the dental (or medical) term used to describe the very same process.
sometimes also reffered as tooth caries or tooth cavities.
12. Can dental caries be reversed?
Yes, if it is caught early. Tooth decay is only reversible in the beginning stages when it has only affected the enamel or the hard outer protective coating of the tooth.
On the other hand once tooth decay has progressed through the enamel into the softer, inner part of the tooth like dentin or Dental pulp, it is irreversible.
Treatments include fluoride, fillings and crowns. Severe cases may need a root canal or removal.