Are we meeting our patients’ individual needs?

Dr. Kelly Tanner discusses how to help patients make informed decisions

As dental professionals, we often fall into the routine of giving standardized advice: “Remember to floss daily,” “Try to limit those sweets,” and “We’ll keep watching this area.” While these recommendations aren’t wrong, they overlook a crucial fact — every patient sitting in our chair brings unique challenges and risk factors.

Our patients trust us to be their oral health advocates. They rely on us to not only identify problems but also to help them understand the connection between their habits and their oral health outcomes. Without comprehensive information tailored to their specific situation, how can they make informed decisions about their care? We typically see our patients for just 2 hours each year. The real question becomes: How are we supporting their oral health journey during the other 8,758 hours?

Let’s explore three key areas where we can provide more individualized care:

Understanding the nutrition connection

When we take time to provide targeted nutritional counseling, we help patients grasp how their food choices impact both their gingival health and oral pH levels. This goes beyond simply saying, “Watch your sugar intake.” We can educate them about the surprising acidity of alternative sweeteners and help them make informed dietary choices that benefit both their oral and overall health.

Staying current with medical changes

Six months between visits is plenty of time for significant changes in a patient’s health. As dental professionals, we’re often the first to identify systemic health changes through oral manifestations. Over 80% of our patients take medications that cause xerostomia, fundamentally affecting their mouth’s ability to buffer, remineralize, and maintain healthy tissues. By staying alert to these changes, we can make timely referrals and help patients understand how their medications might impact their oral health.

Providing effective take-home solutions

Our care shouldn’t stop when patients leave the office. Recommending personalized protective products can help bridge the gap between visits. While electric toothbrushes and remineralizing agents are valuable, products like Profisil^® by Kettenbach offer unique benefits. This innovative fluoride treatment uses a non-allergenic dimethicone formula that patients actually look forward to receiving — a welcome change from traditional varnishes that leave them counting the hours until they can brush it off! The smooth, non-sticky application makes it especially popular among our patients who previously declined fluoride treatments due to texture concerns.

What sets Profisil apart is its sophisticated delivery system. Not only does it occlude dentinal tubules, but it also deposits calcium fluoride crystals, achieving deeper remineralization than traditional varnishes. The dimethicone formula continuously releases fluoride ions for up to 24 hours, providing extended protection without the uncomfortable sticky residue that patients typically associate with fluoride treatments. The fact that it can be applied to wet surfaces and doesn’t require prior prophylaxis for effectiveness makes it a practical choice for both clinicians and patients alike.

The key to providing exceptional care lies in recognizing and responding to each patient’s individual risk factors. By tailoring our approach to their specific needs, we can better support them in achieving optimal oral health. After all, isn’t that why we chose this profession in the first place?