How Much Does Teeth Cleaning Cost

To keep our whole body fit and healthy, we must make sure that we do out best to eat balanced meals every day, drink at least eight glasses of water daily, do some normal exercise like walking, and get enough sleep every night.

Apparently, the wellness of our whole body system also includes taking care of our own set of teeth. Aside from doing the aforementioned healthy habits, brushing our teeth three times a day and flossing, it is very much recommended to have regular dental checkups and teeth cleaning or prophylaxis. But how much does teeth cleaning cost?

Costs of Teeth Cleaning

Generally, the dental cleaning cost varies from the rates set by the dentist, the location of the patients, and the insurance coverage. However, the major cost differences occur when insurance is already involved.

1. Without Insurance

According to the readers of CostHelper Health, the typical teeth cleaning cost ranges from $75 to $200, depending on the location of the dentist’s clinic. Most of the time, setting an appointment for teeth cleaning includes a dentist’s examination and dental X-rays. Adding these extra services to the cost of dental appointment may give you a total cost between $100 to $300. However, there are cases when the expenditures vary due to the differences in dentist’s rates as well as your residential location.

American Dental Association (ADA) said that the average dental cleaning cost without insurance is $61.14 for children while $82.08 for adults. Apart from the costs of prophylaxis, ADA also included other services that are necessary measures for dental care. These are:

– regular dentist checkup                                $44.10

– application of teeth sealant              $44.12

– application of topical fluoride         $32.59 for the adult; $31.70 for the child

In addition to these common preventive dental measures, patients may also undergo scaling and root planing, which is an extensive teeth cleaning process, if the dentist sees the need to do such procedures.

Root planing and scaling, also known as conventional periodontal therapy, is done in four parts or quadrants – lower left, lower right, upper left and upper right. If without insurance, the costs may range from $100 to $450 for one quadrant, amounting from $500 up to $4,000 for the whole mouth deep cleaning. But the total costs may increase depending on how deep the cleaning is needed. If you want fast healing process, then you can be injected with antibiotic that costs from $35 to $85 for one tooth injection.

For those patients who have veered from getting regular dental treatments may get a full-mouth debridement that costs around $75 to $150.

2. With Insurance

When it comes to the dental cleaning cost with insurance, the insurance provider will cover the costs if the patient is in need for dental preventive care. If this the circumstance, patients are usually given 100 percent coverage for the total expenses once a year or up to twice a year. But there are cases when insurance plans set a maximum amount to be covered for the teeth cleaning cost, which is usually less than the price that the dentist charges.

Commonly, the benefits of having dental insurance are periodic dental visit and examination, professional dental cleaning, application of sealants and topical fluoride as well as X-rays, which may be done once a year. However, some insurance plans may not have these benefits, so always make sure that you carefully read and know what your insurance covers beforehand to avoid incurring additional charges.

If with insurance, root planing and scaling may go down between $360 to $437 for one quadrant. But the coverage would still depend on the terms and conditions laid on your dental insurance plan.

Importance of Teeth Cleaning

Yes, we need to take care of our teeth and that is why we brush and floss every day, preventing tooth decay and plaque formation. However, brushing and flossing may not be enough to keep our teeth healthy. We need to go to a dental clinic and have our teeth cleaned by a dentist. Yes, we have to spend a certain amount for dental care, but teeth cleaning cost is justifiable for two reasons:

– tooth loss prevention

– prevention of body diseases like dementia, diabetes and heart disease

Undergoing teeth cleaning removes the formations of plaque and tartar, which are actually natural occurrence in our mouths. However, having too much of them may eventually lead to gum diseases. Moreover, the removal of tartar is necessary since our body considers it as a foreign threat that causes infections.

Types of Gum Diseases and Their Treatment

• Gingivitis. This happens when your gums bleed as you floss. The treatment would be better hygiene, brushing and flossing as well as regular visits to the dentist.

• Early Periodontitis. It is characterized by serious bleeding already. The recommended treatment is root planing and scaling.
• Moderate to Severe Periodontitis. The gum bleeding has already become so severe that the patient needs to undergo several root planing and scaling procedures.

Necessary Questions to Ask During Your Dentist Appointment

If you have decided to spend for a dental cleaning cost, then you can ask these questions before your dentist performs the cleaning procedures. According to Ask The Dentist, these questions are to ensure that you get back your money’s worth.

– Are my gums well? What kind of gum disease am I having

– Have I been brushing too much?

– Have I been grinding my teeth?

– May I ask you to demonstrate how to brush and floss properly?

After Undergoing Teeth Cleaning

Now that you have your teeth cleaned professionally, you should do your best to maintain proper home dental hygiene every day.

Whether you have gum disease or not, it is impeccable to do the following:

– teeth brushing and flossing after eating meals

– eating meals with vegetables

– going to the dentist regularly; If you have gum disease, then you need to go to the dentist every after three months. If your gums are healthy enough and are free from diseases, then have regular checkups every after six months.