Hygiene clean · Scale & polish · Perivale, Ealing
A thorough, unhurried professional clean that removes plaque, tartar and surface staining, checks the health of your gums, and leaves you with a home routine that actually works for your mouth. Carried out by Marisa Lennie, a GDC-registered Dental Hygienist & Therapist at Bilton Road Dental Practice.
Your routine clean, booked directly with a hygienist.
Marisa Lennie · GDC 252605
The short answer
A hygiene clean, also known as a scale and polish or teeth clean, is a routine hygiene visit that removes plaque, tartar and surface staining from above the gumline, then polishes the teeth so they feel smooth and stay easier to clean at home.
“Scaling” is the removal of tartar (calculus), the hardened plaque that brushing can no longer shift. “Polishing” smooths the tooth surface and lifts light staining from tea, coffee, red wine and tobacco. It is the most common reason people see a hygienist, and for most adults with generally healthy gums it is all they need to keep them that way.
Every appointment starts with a gum health check. If that check shows signs of gum disease below the gumline, I’ll explain what I’ve found and recommend the right treatment instead, such as a deep clean, rather than carrying out a clean that won’t reach the problem.
Why brushing isn’t enough
A hygiene clean exists because of what plaque turns into. Here’s the difference, and why a hygienist is needed for one of them.
Soft · forms every day
Hard · stuck to the tooth
Source: HSE (Ireland’s health service): Causes of gum disease (opens in a new tab) and NHS (opens in a new tab).
Your appointment
A hygiene clean follows the same five stages every time. Nothing happens without me telling you first, and you can ask me to pause at any point.
Book a Hygiene CleanMedical history & gum check
We go through your medical history, any medicines and what’s bothering you. Then I screen your gums for bleeding and pocket depth around every tooth, so we know a hygiene clean is the right treatment.
02Scaling
Ultrasonic scaling
A fine ultrasonic tip vibrates hardened tartar off the tooth surface while a cool water spray rinses it away. You’ll hear a soft hum and feel the water; it shouldn’t feel sharp.
Hand scaling
Smaller deposits between the teeth and along the gumline are removed with fine hand instruments, area by area, so nothing is left for plaque to cling to.
Polish & stain removal
A polish lifts light staining and smooths the tooth surface. Smoother teeth feel cleaner, and plaque finds them harder to stick to between visits.
05Coaching
Home-care coaching
Tailored brushing, flossing and interdental brush coaching, in front of a mirror if it helps. You leave knowing which sizes to buy, where to focus and when to come back.
From the chair
After years of hygiene appointments, the same few worries come up again and again. Here’s what I usually find, and what we do about it.
“I brush twice a day. Why do I still get tartar?”
Usually because of where it forms, not how often you brush. The most common spot I see is behind the lower front teeth, close to where saliva enters the mouth, and that’s exactly where a brush tends to skim past. I’ll show you the area with a mirror and angle the brush with you, so you can feel the difference before you leave.
Related: Plaque & tartar
“My gums bleed, so I’ve been brushing them less.”
It’s a very natural reaction, but bleeding is usually a sign of inflammation caused by plaque, and brushing less tends to let it build up further. We look at where the bleeding is, remove the deposits keeping the gums irritated, and start interdental cleaning gently. If the bleeding doesn’t settle, we look further, because it can also be an early sign of gum disease.
Related: Bleeding gums
“It’s been years. I’m embarrassed and a bit nervous.”
Please don’t be: I see it every week, and I’m not there to judge. For a first visit after a long gap, I often suggest the 60-minute extended appointment so there’s time to go slowly. We agree a signal so you can stop me at any moment, and I talk you through each step before I start it.
Related: Care for nervous patients
Choosing the right visit
Not sure? Book the standard visit. If your gum check shows you need something different, I’ll explain why before we change anything.
This page
£9545 min
A routine hygiene visit that removes plaque, tartar and surface staining from above the gumline, then polishes the teeth so they feel smooth and stay easier to clean at home.
Best for
Adults and teenagers with generally healthy gums who want to keep them that way, and anyone whose brushing leaves tartar behind between visits.
Book this visitMost booked
£11060 min
The same hygiene treatment with a full hour of clinical time, so heavier tartar, stubborn staining and harder-to-reach areas are all dealt with thoroughly in one visit.
Best for
Anyone who has not seen a hygienist for a year or more, or who has visible tartar, tea, coffee or tobacco staining, crowded teeth, braces, bridges or implants.
Book the extended visitIf gum disease is found
£130per quadrant · 60 min
Treatment below the gumline when the gums have pulled away from the teeth and pockets have formed. A hygiene clean can’t reach that far.
Best for
When your assessment shows pockets deeper than 4 mm, which a routine clean can’t treat.
About deep cleaningHonest expectations
Knowing the limits matters as much as knowing the benefits. A hygiene clean is a preventive clean: it is very good at what it’s for, and I’ll always tell you if you need something else.
Anaesthetic is not usually needed, though numbing gel is available if you are sensitive. Gums can feel tender for a day and teeth briefly sensitive to cold; you can eat and drink straight away.
If your gums are inflamed, they may bleed a little during the clean. That settles quickly and is one of the reasons we’re removing the deposits.
Based on Delivering Better Oral Health (opens in a new tab) and NHS guidance (opens in a new tab).
There is no single right interval for everyone. NICE guidance (opens in a new tab) says the time between oral health reviews should be based on your own risk: between 3 and 24 months for adults, and no longer than 12 months for under-18s.
“Great practice with an attentive and friendly team. I’ve been to several hygienists/therapists before and found Marisa to be by far the most gentle but thorough. Her assistant was also super friendly. I’ll be happy to have my treatment here again in the future and can genuinely recommend the practice to anyone.”
“A special thank you to Marisa, my hygienist. She is exceptionally professional, thorough, and gentle, always making me feel comfortable during my appointments. Her attention to detail and dedication to excellent care are truly appreciated.”
Hygiene clean FAQs
Can’t see your question? Email me or call 020 8997 0933.
A standard 45-minute hygiene clean is £95. The 60-minute extended visit, for heavier tartar or staining, is £110.
Yes. “Hygiene clean”, “teeth clean” and “scale and polish” usually mean the same routine appointment: plaque, tartar and surface staining are removed from above the gumline, then the teeth are polished. If your gum check shows signs of gum disease, you may need a deep clean instead, which treats the area beneath the gumline.
No. You can book a hygiene clean with me directly under the GDC’s direct access rules, with no need to see a dentist first. If I spot anything that needs a dentist, such as decay, I’ll tell you and refer you on.
Anaesthetic is not usually needed, though numbing gel is available if you are sensitive. Gums can feel tender for a day and teeth briefly sensitive to cold; you can eat and drink straight away.
The standard appointment is 45 minutes. The extended appointment is 60 minutes, which allows extra time for heavier tartar, stubborn staining and harder-to-reach areas.
Every 6 months for most people; every 3–4 months if you smoke, have crowded teeth or your gums bleed when you brush. NICE guidance says the interval should be based on your own risk, between 3 and 24 months for adults.
It removes surface staining from things like tea, coffee, red wine and tobacco, so teeth often look brighter afterwards. It doesn’t change the natural shade of your teeth; that is tooth whitening, which is a separate treatment.
Yes, especially after heavier tartar is removed. The spaces were already there; the tartar was filling them. Your tongue notices the difference for a few days, and keeping those spaces clean with interdental brushes helps the gums tighten up around them.
A hygiene clean works above the gumline and is preventive. A deep clean (root surface debridement) is a targeted, quadrant-by-quadrant clean beneath the gumline for diagnosed gum disease, usually with local anaesthetic, over a course of 2–4 appointments.
Marisa qualified through the Royal College of Surgeons of England, training clinically at King’s College Hospital, London, and is an Approved Education Supervisor for trainee hygienists & therapists. She has carried out routine hygiene care for patients since 2014.
This page explains a routine hygiene clean. It isn’t a diagnosis. Gums that bleed every time you brush, a tooth that aches, or swelling in your gum or face should be checked, urgently in the case of swelling.
Call the practice or send an email to book your appointment.
Bilton Road Dental Practice · 56 Bilton Rd, Perivale, Greenford, London, UB6 7DH
Hygiene clean in Perivale, Ealing (UB6), for patients from Greenford, Alperton, Sudbury, Hanwell and Northolt.
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