The FINANCIAL — The number of patients is increasing at dental clinics. Caries, parodontics and teeth whitening procedures are the most demanded services nowadays.
“The main cause of most tooth problems is inadequate hygiene,” dentist Mariam Kvirikashvili, head of the dental clinic Algan Dent, told The FINANCIAL.
“Nowadays one of the main problems is parodontics,” she said. “Its reason may be genetic, but in most cases it is caused by not keeping up a regular form of hygiene. The best way to prevent paradontics and other dental issues, is cleaning the teeth for at least 3 minutes twice a day and having a professional cleaning done by a dentist at least twice a year.”
The treatment of parodontics costs 300 GEL at Algan Dent. It requires a maximum of 3 visits. The clinic has the latest apparatus for the treatment imported from Germany.
Dentists at aesthetic centre Medi agree that keeping up adequate hygiene of the mouth is the best way to keep one’s teeth healthy and white. But at the same time food products, drugs, cosmetics and cigarettes contain substances that change the colour of tooth issue and help tooth discolouration occur. It can also be due to a disorder of the process of teeth tissue formation.
“Caries and plaque on the teeth are the results of consuming too many carbohydrates,” said Lana Papunashvili, dentist at Medi. “In general sweets contain too many carbohydrates. This substance when left on one’s teeth transforms into caries after 72 hours. The chemical substances in toothpaste need 3 minutes to take effect. Otherwise it’s the same as just cleaning the teeth with water and no toothpaste.”
“In addition to that, somatic diseases cause changes in the composition of saliva and increase plaque on the teeth,” she added.
“People who regularly eat healthy portions of vegetables and dairy products rarely have problems of caries or plaque on their teeth,” said Maka Gvelesiani, Head of medical issues at Alba Dent.
Medi has two types of service – standard and gold. The standard price of cleaning discoloured teeth is 45 GEL. The gold price starts from 90 GEL and goes up to 350 GEL.
The prices of professional teeth cleaning are almost the same at Alba Dent. Mechanical cleaning costs 35-70 GEL, and chemical – 300 GEL.
Doctors say that professional cleaning twice a year is mandatory to keep one’s teeth healthy. The second step for a bright smile is professional bleaching. It costs more and the effect lasts longer, up to 3 years.
“Currently one of the most demanded services at our clinic is teeth bleaching,” said Gvelesiani. “Bleaching is very effective and makes teeth 4-5 tones lighter. But if a person doesn’t use good toothpaste, smokes too much or drinks 5 cups of tea daily following the whitening procedure, then it loses its effect very soon.”
Most clinics offer two types of bleaching: professional bleaching and teeth bleaching in home conditions. Professional bleaching is done by laser. A special chemical substance is placed on the teeth and after laser influence pigments lose their colour. It takes only one hour. Teeth bleaching at home is a slightly complicated process. A patient uses a special framework, done individually for him/her at clinic, every night for two weeks.
Professional bleaching with a laser costs 450 GEL at Algan Dent and 500 GEL – at Medi, while teeth bleaching in home conditions costs 400 GEL at Algan Dent and 380 – at Medi.
“Teeth cleaning or bleaching causes increased teeth sensitivity for two days,” Gvelesiani said. “But we use special gels and pastes to keep our patients’ level of sensitivity normal after these procedures.”
In general high sensitivity is down to improper teeth formation, which can also wear out teeth. But food also influences sensitivity.
“The reason for high sensitivity is lack of fluorine,” Papunashvili said. “People mostly get fluorine from water. Georgian water is lacking this substance. That’s why Georgian people frequently experience increased tooth sensitivity.”
“Proper formation of the teeth is important for keeping a normal level of sensitivity,” she noted.
There are two ways to fix formation defects: breakers and plates. Plates are for children under 15, breakers – for anyone from 10.
“Demand for breakers has significantly increased,” Kvirikashvili said. “Its price varies from 700 to 1,200 GEL.”
An innovation in Georgian dentistry is the process of tooth implantation. The average price of a tooth implant is 1,000 GEL. During the implantation process artificial roots are implanted into the gum and later a crown is built on it.
Besides ordinary services teeth tattoos and the application of precious stones on the teeth is also available at Georgian dentist clinics.
To keep teeth healthy dentists encourage everyone to clean their teeth before bed and after breakfast for 3 minutes with an upward sweeping motion, to consult a dentist twice a year and they won’t have any serious problems.
