Loading page
About this tool
Work out a dental recall interval from your risk factors within the 3-24 month evidence-based range, and export a calendar reminder.
The six-month dental check-up is a convention, not a rule: evidence-based guidance sets the recall interval anywhere from 3 to 24 months for adults, and 3 to 12 months for patients under 18, according to the person's risk of new disease. This planner scores thirteen routine caries and periodontal risk factors, maps the score onto a band, keeps the resulting interval inside the guideline range for the age, and gives you the due date, a reminder date two weeks earlier and a downloadable calendar file.
Open Dentist Visit Reminder Planner on AltFTool — it loads instantly in your browser.
Add your input to the workspace.
Adjust the options until the result looks right.
Copy or download the output and put it to work.
The score maps onto a band and an interval that always sits inside the published 3–24 month range.
Under-18s are capped at 12 months, matching the separate range set for children and young people.
A standard .ics file with a 14-day alarm imports into any calendar app without an account.
Somewhere between every 3 and 24 months if you are an adult, and between every 3 and 12 months if you are under 18. Evidence-based guidance rejects a fixed six-month rule and asks the dentist to set the interval from your risk of new decay and gum disease. Low-risk adults with no history of disease can safely go up to two years; people with active gum disease or recent decay are usually seen every three to six months.
The main ones are new decay or a filling in the last two years, bleeding gums or deep periodontal pockets, smoking or any tobacco use, sugary food or drink more than about four times a day, and a dry mouth from medicines or a medical condition. Not using a 1350–1500 ppm fluoride toothpaste, not cleaning between the teeth, wearing appliances and missing appointments add to the picture.
For a genuinely low-risk adult, a 24-month interval is within the guideline range. Beyond that you are outside it, and the problem with decay and gum disease is that both are painless until they are advanced — by the time something hurts, the treatment is usually bigger. Book sooner than any recall date for pain, swelling, a broken tooth or bleeding that does not settle.
The range for under-18s is narrower: 3 to 12 months rather than 3 to 24. Children's teeth develop faster, decay progresses more quickly through thinner enamel, and habits are still being set, so the guidance does not allow the two-year interval that a low-risk adult can have.