First Visit at Northside Dental
When you call our office to schedule an appointment, you will be greeted on the phone by our front desk coordinator. Our front desk coordinator will ask you what type of appointment you are looking to schedule. For your first visit, you can either choose between a comprehensive oral exam or a limited exam that is focused to a specific problem or dental emergency you are experiencing. After the type of appointment is decided, our front desk coordinator will gather your information so we have everything ready prior to your visit. This will include personal information such as your name, birthdate, address, telephone number and email address. They will then ask for you dental insurance information so that we can verify your insurance prior to your visit.
Comprehensive Oral Exam
When you have decided to become a new patient at our office you will receive a comprehensive oral exam.
Tooth Charting
charting of any missing teeth, existing restorations, existing conditions and visual detection of dental decay.
Periodontal Charting
Periodontal charting also known as gum charting includes measuring the attachment/bone levels around your teeth in millimeters. Your teeth are attached to your jaw via gums and bone. Periodontal charting is necessary in diagnosing periodontal disease or bone loss.
Dental Radiographs
At our new patient exams, we take full mouth x-rays which allows us to see the root and crown of every tooth in your mouth. Dental radiographs or x-rays are necessary in detecting tooth decay that cannot be seen with the naked eye.
Photographs
At every new patient visit, you will have a series of photographs taken of your smile. This is necessary to create a baseline of how your smile is presented at your first visit and is necessary to monitor any changes that occur throughout the years. Photographs are also a great tool for patient education as this is a more detailed way of looking at your smile then just looking in the mirror.
Intra-Oral Scans
Northside Dental is equipped with the latest dental technologies including an intra-oral scanner. This tool is often used at our new patient exams to take pictures of decayed teeth, broken/cracked restorations, broken/fractured teeth, etc. This tool is a great way to show the patient what dental conditions we have diagnosed and to educate the patient.
Oral Cancer Screening
Every patient receives an oral cancer screening at every comprehensive and periodic exam. This includes screening all the tissues of your mouth to look for any signs of oral cancer or other oral conditions. This includes assessing the gums, inner and outer lips, inside of cheeks, all surfaces of the tongue, roof of the mouth and the throat.
Additional services upon request or interest of patient
After a comprehensive oral exam, we have some other options available to our patients.
Same Day Dental Cleaning
If you have indicated during scheduling that you are wanting to receive a dental cleaning the same day as your comprehensive oral examination, we will allow time in the schedule for this to occur.
Invisalign Consultation
If you have indicated during scheduling, that you are interested in receiving an Invisalign consultation we will include this service in your comprehensive exam. We will assess your smile, your bite, degree of malocclusion and determine if you are a good candidate to receive Invisalign at our office.
Whitening Consultation
If you have indicated during scheduling that you are interested in receiving a whitening consultation we will include this service in your comprehensive exam. We will go over our options for whitening at our office and educate you on the process. Together we will decide which whitening option is best for you.
Cosmetic Smile Consultation
If you have indicated during scheduling that you are interested in receiving a cosmetic smile consultation we will include this service in your comprehensive exam. For this consultation, photographs of the patient’s smile will be utilized to discuss in detail the changes the patient wishes to make to their smile. Together we will decide what type of cosmetic option will be best to achieve your best smile.
