There is a lot of confusion amongst people when they go to choose a new dentist. You have general, family and cosmetic dentistry offices at your disposal, but it can be almost impossible to figure out which one is best for you. While there are no specific rules when considering a dental care provider, it can help to learn what each one does and why.
Cosmetic
This type of dentist usually focuses on the way your teeth look and not necessarily their health. While they will not do anything that harms your teeth, they will make them look whiter, give you porcelain fillings, veneers, and other options to make them look larger, better, whiter and overall nicer.
If you find a dental office that only focuses on the elective options, they probably won’t clean your teeth and check them for problems.
General
General dentistry is sometimes called family dentistry and focuses mainly on how healthy your teeth are and how to make them more healthy. They concentrate on the entire mouth and neck to ensure that you aren’t getting cancer and don’t have any other problems that could affect speech or the mouth.
Most of these dentists prefer to work with specific age groups, such as children or women though some will take all patients. You can usually get appointments early and late, at least one day a week and are sometimes available for emergency needs.
Family
Family dentists will take care of the whole family, from infants to senior citizens. These dentists are considered general dentists though they can work with many age ranges. You may find that visiting a family dentist alleviates your need for having a pediatric one because he can effectively communicate with your child and make him or her feel at ease.
All-in-One
Many times, you find dentists that do both general and cosmetic procedures. These are typically called all-in-one dentists or one-stop-shop dentists and are the choice of many. However, some dental offices may not be able to offer all elective services because they are not qualified. Therefore, it can be better to find someone who only does elective services, as they do them more frequently and have more experience and a higher success rate.
