Professional tooth cleaning (pzr): process and costs

professional
teeth cleaning

definition & introduction

Professional teeth cleaning: process and costs

definition: Professional teeth cleaning (PZR) means prophylaxis treatment at the dentist, in which the teeth are professionally cleaned mechanically. The scope of professional tooth cleaning (PZR) depends on the oral hygiene condition.

The cost of professional teeth cleaning must i. d. Usually be borne by yourself, since very few health insurance companies take over this service.

It is not uncommon for you to incur costs of around 200 euros per year. It doesn’t have to be.

With MediKompassDE you can compare prices for professional teeth cleaning. Top-rated dentists in your area make you a cheap offer here. Our service is free of charge for you as a patient.

Brief info: FAQ

What does PZR mean at the dentist?

The term PZR stands for professional tooth cleaning. This means cleaning the teeth of a professional. This is the only way to thoroughly clean stubborn deposits and hard-to-reach areas. A PZR is used to prevent common diseases such as periodontitis and tooth decay.

Who pays for professional teeth cleaning?

Some health insurance companies cover the cost of professional tooth cleaning once or twice a year. In most cases, however, patients have to pay for this sensible preventive measure themselves. A PZR costs between € 40 and € 120 on average.

Who can do professional teeth cleaning?

As a rule, treatment is not carried out by the dentist, but by his employees. Dental assistants as well as dental prophylaxis assistants, dental hygienists or dental assistants can carry out the treatment.

How many times a year should you have a PZR done with you??

Many dentists recommend that you have your teeth cleaned at the dentist twice a year. For risk patients, such as smokers, three or more PZRs may also be advised. The PZR is also very advisable for older people: on the one hand, the gums shrink in old age, and on the other hand, the susceptibility to periodontitis and caries increases.

How does professional tooth cleaning work at the dentist?

In the first step, hard deposits on the teeth and under the gums are removed using instruments and ultrasound. Stubborn deposits are then removed using polish and powder jets. The final step is the fluoridation of the teeth.

What does professional teeth cleaning involve??

The process of professional tooth cleaning is not exactly prescribed. The scope of professional tooth cleaning (PZR) depends on the patient’s oral hygiene status.

Why professional teeth cleaning?

On the one hand, there are places in the mouth that are difficult to clean at home. This mainly affects the area under the gums. On the other hand, there are dental plaque that cannot be removed with home remedies, tartar and smoker’s plaque.

Why is fluoridation carried out after a PZR??

Teeth demineralize due to various influences and are thus susceptible to tooth decay. Fluoride embedded in the tooth tissues is also lost during the polishing, as is carried out in the course of a PZR. Pastes containing fluoride can partially reverse these processes: The teeth are remineralized. In addition, compounds containing fluoride have antibacterial properties.

How long should you not drink coffee after a PZR?

The longer the better. At least two hours as the teeth are susceptible to discoloration after professional tooth cleaning.

How long should you not smoke after professional teeth cleaning?

Basically, after a PZR, tobacco consumption and strongly coloring foods should be avoided. There are no fixed times here. As a rule of thumb, you should hold back at least two hours, otherwise the result will deteriorate.

Dental plaque and removal

Over time, plaque forms on the teeth, which attack teeth through acids and cell toxins. As a result, gingivitis (inflammation of the gums), periodontitis and tooth damage such as caries can develop. Thorough cleaning with a toothbrush can remove large parts of the plaque, but plaque remains often remain in hard-to-reach places.

The first step of a PZR is therefore the removal of soft, possibly mineralized dental plaque. These can be located as a tartar above and as a calculus below the gums. This step is called rough depuration.

The following instruments are used: hewing, chisels, dental floss, brushes, files, scrapers, curettes and ultrasound devices.

The next step is to remove the remaining deposits, which are barely visible to the naked eye, using finer instruments or a powder jet. The dentist calls this step "enemy depuration".

In general, professional teeth cleaning is not associated with pain.

Selective polishing of the teeth

A polish is often the usual completion of a tooth cleaning. However, a full polish on all tooth surfaces can do more harm than good because it attacks dental plaque. A compromise is the so-called selective polishing. Only discolorations on tooth surfaces are removed.

The majority of polishing pastes consist of so-called cleaning bodies such as pumice, baking powder or silicates. The coarser the cleaning body, the better its cleaning effect, but also its ablative and therefore harmful effect on the tooth surfaces (abrasion).

Fluoride embedded in the tooth tissues is lost during a polish. Therefore, after polishing, a so-called fluoridation should be carried out, in which fluorine is added.

The polishing can be done with tools such as rubber bowls. The rubber bowl filled with polishing agent is placed over the tooth to be polished for a few seconds. The polishing is carried out by means of a rotary movement. Advantage: The polishing can be done in isolation, surrounding teeth are not affected.

The polishing of the tooth serves to smooth the surface of the tooth and thus reduce the formation of new plaque.

Cleaning with a powder jet

If deposits are still present after polishing, these can be removed by powder jet or water jet cleaning. With this, too "air polishing" or air "flow called", Method, a device is used that works like a water jet cleaner. Compressed air and cleaning powder are forced through a nozzle at high pressure. Water is added so that a compressed air-powder-water mixture hits the tooth surfaces at high speed using a fine spray jet. The force of the jet triggers the cleaning effect.

Powder or water jet cleaning is also used to remove discoloration on individual teeth and to clean uneven tooth surfaces, so-called fissures. However, it should be noted that overly aggressive use always carries the risk that the enamel will be attacked and removed. Especially in children in the so-called posteruptive enamel maturation phase, i.e. in the phase between milk dentition and permanent dentition, powder and water jet cleaning should not be carried out. Care should also be taken with fillings: the jet roughenes their surfaces.

To protect the enamel in the future, the entire tooth surface will be coated with a fluoride varnish.

Alternatively: PZR with ultrasound

Ultrasonic vibrations can break up dental plaque and detach it from its base. Therefore, as a supplement to or instead of mechanical hand tools, ultrasonic devices are used for tooth cleaning. Such devices were originally only used for superficial cleaning of the teeth. There are now devices with very fine working tips so that they can also be used to clean deep, narrow tooth pockets. Ultrasound devices cannot completely replace hand instruments, but are a valuable addition.

There are different types of ultrasound devices, depending on how the vibrations are generated: magnetorestrictive devices, piezoelectric devices and air-powered sound devices (airscaler).

Ultrasonic waves have a cleaning effect due to the strength of the oscillating movements. They act like small hammers on the plaque. In addition, the waves cause cavitation, i.e. the vibrational energy of the ultrasound waves is transferred to liquids such as saliva or the cooling water for the ultrasound device in the mouth. This cavitation kills bacteria. In addition, loosened dental plaque and bacteria are flushed out of the gum pockets by the rinsing flow of the cooling water.

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