The International Agency for Research on Cancer says clinical oral examination may reduce oral cancer mortality in people exposed to tobacco, areca nut or alcohol. The exam uses visual inspection and palpation to find suspicious lesions, but a positive result requires diagnostic follow-up and a negative result cannot rule out cancer.
Adults can undergo orthodontic treatment, but appliance choice depends on the teeth, gums, roots and jaws rather than age alone. Clear aligners and fixed braces can produce similar results in some cases, while complex treatment and unsupervised mail-order care carry greater uncertainty.
Root canal treatment removes inflamed or infected pulp, cleans and seals the canals, and preserves the outer tooth. The treated tooth can still develop decay or fracture, and the appropriate final restoration depends on its location and remaining structure.
A 2020 network meta-analysis of 125 trials found that several desensitizing toothpaste ingredients reduced pain from exposed dentin. Brief pain may fit dentin sensitivity, but lasting or spontaneous pain requires dental assessment because decay, a crack and pulp inflammation can feel similar.
A Cochrane review of 71 trials found that home bleaching whitened adult teeth over two weeks to six months, though the evidence was low to very low certainty. Peroxide changes pigments inside natural teeth, while whitening toothpaste mainly removes surface stains and can neither bleach restorations nor correct every discoloration.
Decay, infection, cysts and damage to a neighboring tooth can make wisdom-tooth removal appropriate. For symptom-free, disease-free impacted teeth, evidence does not establish that routine removal is better than monitoring.
A dental implant quote can cover several clinical and laboratory stages rather than one replacement tooth. Implant and crown materials matter, but bone grafting, case complexity and long-term maintenance can also change the total.
Meta-analyses of cohort studies have linked tooth loss with a higher rate of dementia, though the size of the association varies across studies. Denture users did not have a clear increase in one subgroup analysis, but the evidence cannot show that replacement teeth prevent cognitive decline.
The World Health Organization recommends twice-daily brushing with toothpaste containing 1,000 to 1,500 parts per million fluoride. Children need only a rice-grain smear or pea-sized amount because swallowing too much at once can cause acute toxicity and repeated excess intake while teeth develop can cause fluorosis.
The American Heart Association said in December 2025 that gum disease remains associated with cardiovascular disease, but evidence has not established cause and effect. By contrast, a 2022 Cochrane review found that treating periodontitis modestly improved blood glucose control in people with diabetes.
