Periodontal disease (Gum disease) is a bacterial infection of the gums and bone that surround and support your teeth. It is a major cause of tooth loss in adults. Gum disease is usually painless and patients who are affected may not know they have it (until it is too late).
You may have gum disease if you have any of these:
- bleeding gums or pus discharge
- red, swollen, painful, ulcerated gums
- gums are receding (teeth start appearing longer)
- shaky teeth
- teeth are drifting apart (spaces start appearing between teeth)
- teeth that feel weak when biting or eating
- unable to bite properly
- persistent bad breath or bad taste
Periodontal disease affects your health! There are many research studies that prove that gum disease is associated with several other health conditions such as diabetes, stroke, heart problem, osteoporosis, autoimmune disease, Alzheimer’s disease etc. Periodontal disease also affects pregnancy and may cause pre-term low birth weight babies.
You are at high risk of developing periodontal disease if you:
- have a family history of periodontal disease (if someone in your family has periodontal disease)
- smoke (especially more than 5 sticks/day for many years)
- have uncontrolled diabetes
- have a poor oral hygiene
- do not go for regular dental checkup
Periodontal Treatment
These are the 2 basic approaches in the management of periodontal disease,
- Non-surgical treatment is essentially full mouth debridement using deep scaling and root planing techniques. This includes scraping and removing the plaque and tartar from the root surfaces; and then smoothening any roughness on the root surfaces to prevent bacteria from forming again. Depending on the severity of the case (determined by the severity of periodontal probing depths and oral hygiene status), the treatment may take a few visits. Treatment is usually carried out in quadrants with local anesthetic injection.
- Surgical treatment involves reflection of the gum tissues to increase accessibility of the affected sites for improved scaling and root planing, removal of infectious bacteria and removal of damaged bone. This allows better reattachment of the gum tissues to the healthy bone. In some cases, bone grafting procedures may be performed to promote the growth of bone in the area where bone has been previously destroyed by periodontal disease.
Periodontal Maintenance is very important. Once you have had periodontal disease, your risk of having a recurrence if very high. You should continue maintenance visits every 4 months at least. During each maintenance visit, a thorough periodontal examination and charting will be carried out and compared to the previous visit. Any recurrence can be treated promptly before it progresses and becomes more severe. A debridement will be carried out (with or without local anesthetic) and oral hygiene instructions will be given according to the maintenance phase that you are in. Periodontal treatment is holistic and changes periodically. A proper periodontal treatment will be catered to you accordingly at each visit.