Periodontal disease or Periodontitis is a severe, chronic inflammatory gum disease that destroys the soft tissues and alveolar bones supporting your teeth. It is incredibly widespread, affecting roughly 20% to 50% of the global population. If left untreated, it serves as a primary cause of tooth loss and can negatively impact systemic health.
For periodontal disease, a regular professional cleaning is not enough. When
this happen, your dentist may refer you to a periodontist – a specialist in gum diseases. It requires higher care than normal levels of tartar or may be more susceptible to periodontal disease. In this case, deeper periodontal cleaning or root planing is necessary. Not only periodontal cleaning can remove necrotic tissues and heavy buildup to maintain the health of your roots and gums, you will only need regular dental cleanings to maintain your oral hygiene afterwards.
Periodontal treatment is care that your dental health professional performed to ensure you have healthy gums. Periodontal treatment is designed specifically for your type of gum disease.Periodontal disease involves destruction of tooth supporting tissues (bone and gum). It happens in a cyclic manner, with bursts of destruction and periods of inactivity.
The most common procedures involved in periodontal treatment are scaling and root planing. Scaling involves removal of plaque and calculus deposits that are visible above and just below the gums on the root of the tooth. Your dental health professional may use an ultrasonic cleaning device or hand instruments to do this.
Scaling vs Root Planing
The success of periodontal treatment is largely due to the effort you as an individual make to remove the daily build-up of plaque from tooth and gum surfaces. To prevent and help heal inflamed gums, it is essential to control plaque build-up.
Preventing periodontal disease comes down to managing the bacteria in your mouth and controlling your body’s inflammatory response. When plaque builds up, your immune system triggers a wave of localized inflammation to fight it. If this inflammation becomes chronic, it begins to break down the very bone and tissue holding your teeth in place. Based on recent clinical research, you can protect your smile and prevent advanced gum disease by focusing on these core pillars:
Because periodontitis is initially triggered by the persistent accumulation of subgingival plaque and calculus (tartar), removing this buildup daily is mandatory.
Surprisely!!! The study reveals working out does more than keep your heart healthy. This actively protects your gums.
Tobacco use acts as an accelerant for gum destruction.
You cannot scrape away calcified tartar (calculus) at home. Your dental health professional can remove plaque and calculus that has built up over a period of year. Plaque is a sticky, colorless film of bacteria that builds up on the teeth and is the major cause of gingivitis and periodontitis. Calculus is plaque that has hardened over time (often called “tartar”).
Conditions that thin your bones, like osteoporosis (especially common in postmenopausal women), directly compound the severity of gum disease.
The type of periodontal treatment needed will vary according to the severity of your gum problem. Different aspects of treatment, and the time it is likely to take, will be explained by your dental professional. The treatment plan is usually adapted to fit with other dental treatment you may require.
Yes! The moment you quit smoking, your body’s natural ability to heal resets. Studies show that former smokers respond very well to routine dental cleanings, effectively stopping tooth loss and making their dental investments worthwhile.
Osteoporosis thins out bones all over your body, including your jawbone. Because the jawbone is already weakened, gum disease can destroy it much faster. Interestingly, osteoporosis even changes the mineral mixture of your tooth roots, making them weaker and more vulnerable to infection.
You can, but only after your gum disease is completely treated and controlled. Implants are placed into the same bone that gum disease attacks. Research shows that patients with active gum disease face a threefold higher risk of implant failure and painful hardware infections (peri-implantitis).
Not always. Even if an infection has traveled deep into both the gum line and the tooth nerve (creating deep pockets), advanced dentistry can save it. By combining a timed root canal, deep cleanings, targeted antibiotics, and special bone-growing gels, dentists can successfully rebuild the lost bone and rescue the tooth.
Yes, the study show that leaving your mouth in a state of constant, aggressive inflammation causes long-term cellular stress. Studies show that oral cancer is significantly more common in people with severe gum disease—in fact, 72.1% of oral cancer patients evaluated had advanced, Stage 4 periodontitis. If you have severe gum disease, regular oral cancer screenings at the dentist are highly recommended.
Perodontal Disease Paper Reference
