Periodontal/Gum Disease Treatment
What Is Gingivitis
Gingivitis is a mild form of gum disease. It is caused by plaque spreading and growing below the gum line from not maintaining good oral hygiene. If left untreated, gums can separate from the teeth, forming pockets that are easy targets for infection. It can be reversed through professional dental care and good oral home care. If left untreated, it can lead to more serious complications such as tooth loss and other simultaneous diseases like coronary heart disease, low birth weight and diabetes.
The symptoms of gingivitis are:
- Red, swollen, receding gums that bleed easily
- Bad breath
- Tender gums
- Mouth sores
What is Periodontitis
When gingivitis isn’t taken care of, it can lead to periodontitis. The inner layer of the gum and bone will pull away from the teeth to form pockets. These spaces between teeth and gums collect debris, which will lead to infection. Periodontitis is also caused by hormonal changes, medications that reduce the amount of salvia in the gums and poor dental hygiene.
The symptoms of periodontitis are:
- red, puffy, tender gums that bleed easily
- gums that have receded from teeth
- dry mouth
- bad breath or bad taste in the mouth
- loose teeth
- change in bite
Periodontal disease can lead to systemic diseases such as Heart Disease, Diabetes, low term birth rate babies, Alzheimer’s Disease, and High Blood Pressure. This link between periodontal disease and systemic diseases is referred to the oral systemic link.
Are you suffering from the symptoms listed above?
There are many options for treating periodontitis or gum diseases so you can start enjoying the benefits and comfort of better oral health. Our treatment includes removing the infection from the gums and adjacent bone, facilitating healing of the gums and bone, correcting the damage done to the gums and bone and thus preventing further damage. The dentists at Wurzbach Parkway Family Dental are here to help you prevent and treat your periodontal issues.
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It is very simple to treat gingivitis:
- have a professional dental cleaning to remove plaque and tartar
- regularly brush teeth twice a day and floss daily to prevent any bacteria build-up
For less advanced periodontitis, surgery is not necessary. The following treatments may be used:
- Scaling: During this procedure the dentist uses ultrasonic and manual instruments to remove calculus. The plaque is scraped from above and below the gum line.
- Root Planing: The dentist smoothes the rough spots on the tooth. This helps removes the bacteria that collects there and helps the gums reattach.
- Gingival curettage: Removes soft tissue lining of the periodontal pockets to eliminate bacteria and diseased tissue. It is a deeper cleaning than scaling and root planning.
If the periodontal disease has gone too far, surgery is needed.
- Open Flap Curettage: During this procedure, the surgeon flaps the gums away from the tooth and surrounding bone. The diseased root surfaces are cleaned and scraped away to remove deposits, and the tissue is replaced to minimize pocket depth. The remaining bones may also be contoured to regenerate lost bone.
- Guided Tissue Regeneration: This stimulates bone and gum tissue growth. The root surfaces and diseased bone are cleaned out. Then a special piece of fabric is sewn around the tooth to cover it. The gum is sewn over the fabric to allow the bone and root attachment to regenerate.
- Bone grafting: During severe bone loss the surgeon may attempt to encourage re-growth and restoration of bone tissue that was lost through disease. The bone graft is either your own bone, or from a donor, and it stimulates new bone growth in the area.
