What is Guided Biofilm Therapy (GBT)?
GBT is a modern approach to dental hygiene and gum health, following a standardised 8-step protocol to help you get the most from your visit. It uses exclusive technology including the Airflow powder/water jet for soft plaque removal and the advanced ultrasonic Piezon for tartar removal.
Rather than following the traditional scale-polish-advise sequence, GBT uses a dye to highlight the areas where bacterial biofilm builds up. This means more time is spent targeting those problem areas for thorough, effective biofilm removal.
Dental hygiene therapy helps to improve gum health
Effective dental cleaning helps to keep your gums healthy, and regular hygienist appointments are an important part of this.
All dental hygiene appointments, both traditional and GBT, are an important contributor to healthy teeth and gums. Your dental hygienist will always aim to remove as much plaque and tartar as possible, and give you bespoke advice on how to get the most from your cleaning routine at home.
This professional cleaning, and advice on effective home cleaning help to set the foundations for good gum health.
GBT highlights the areas to target
This is the ‘Guided’ part. We use a dye to highlight plaque and bacterial biofilm on the teeth. It’s this soft plaque that causes gingivitis and gum disease, so targeting these areas helps you get the most benefit from your therapy.
It helps your hygiene therapist and makes it easier for them to remove 100% of the biofilm
It helps you at home
Plaque and biofilm is tooth-coloured. It’s hard to see in the mirror.
When you come for a GBT appointment, you can see the highlighted biofilm easily when you look in the mirror. This helps you visualise those areas when you’re brushing and interdental cleaning, so you can also target the problem areas at home.
If you want to get the same highlighting effect at home to help guide your cleaning, disclosing tablets are widely available
GBT is comfortable
If you’re not a fan of traditional hygiene appointments, you’re not alone. It’s not uncommon that the ultrasonic scaler and the feeling of cold can be uncomfortable.
With GBT’s exclusive technology, the water is warmed for your comfort, and the Piezon ultrasonic has been specially engineered for comfort. This means that your if you struggle with sensitivity during hygiene appointments, you may find GBT much easier.
3 types of cleaning technology
GBT uses 3 types of exclusive cleaning technology in sequence so you get the best clean every time
- Airflow: A fine air/powder/water jet for removal of soft plaque biofilm
- Perioflow: A special type of airflow with an extra-fine extended tip for biofilm removal inside deep gum pockets
- Piezon: An advanced ultrasonic scaler for removal of hard biofilm deposits
Types of biofilm: Soft plaque and Hard plaque
Bacterial biofilm can be soft (dental plaque) or hard (tartar). Soft biofilm is more damaging because the bacteria are more free and active
Soft biofilm is easy to remove, but only if you can see where it is, and this is where GBT sets itself apart.
Unlike traditional hygiene or a ‘scale & polish’, GBT has been designed for the highlighting and removal of the most damaging soft biofilm. The primary focus is on soft biofilm removal using Airflow cleaning (air/powder/water), which is comfortably and effective. Any remaining hard plaque can be removed using the Piezon ultrasonic, but this is often needed only sparingly to remove any remaining hard biofilm.
The focus on soft biofilm helps GBT to be more effective, and more comfortable.
What to choose?
Whether you choose traditional hygiene therapy or GBT, it’s good for your gum health. Traditional hygiene has been effective for a long time, but people can find it uncomfortable, and this may put you off from visiting as often as you might.
This is where GBT can really help. Because it’s both comfortable and effective, you can look forward to your visits without apprehension, and enjoy the benefits of improved dental and gum health.