Gum Disease, Periodontal Disease, Gingivitis, Bleeding Gums
Gum disease or Periodontal disease is inflammation
of soft tissue surrounding the teeth. This condition is much more
serious than a single abscess. Gingivitis is the precursor to periodontitis
which is the final step of gum disease that can ultimately lead to
tooth loss.
It’s hard to believe that in a 2002 poll of
1,000 Americans over the age of 35, it was determined that 60% of
adults polled knew little or nothing about gum disease! A tragedy
when you consider that gum disease is the leading factor in tooth
loss, even healthy teeth.
Your teeth can appear to be healthy and disease free,
when under the surface gum disease can stalwartly march on creating
a condition that will ultimately lead to serious tooth loss. Bad breath
is a “red flag” to help determine if this problem is prevalent
in your mouth.
Healthy gum tissue forms a shallow groove at the point
where the tooth meets the gum line. This disease occurs when the anaerobic,
sulfur producing bacteria we discussed earlier, become trapped beneath
the gum line.
This is a perfect breeding ground for the bacteria
and they will settle in and take residence. Not recognizing and dealing
with the problem will result in serious dental problems up to and
including loss of teeth and even underlying bone disease.
If you are diagnosed with serious periodontal disease,
work to save your teeth needs to begin as soon as possible.
The first step that your dentist will take is probably
what is called “scaling and root planing.” This is a non-surgical
procedure to remove the deposits of plaque on the surface of the tooth
including the root. Since periodontal disease rarely occurs in just
one tooth, this will probably need to be done to all your teeth.
The dentist will scrape the surfaces of the tooth
below the gum line to remove all traces of plaque clear down to the
bottom of the pocket. He will then smooth the surface of the root
to encourage healthy gum tissue to heal. This process also discourages
plaque from reforming.
Depending on how involved your case might be, the
dentist may prescribe medication to assist in healing or control pain
and potential infection.
More diagnostics are required before a prognosis of
your case of periodontal disease can be given. Each deposit of plaque
creates its own “pocket” and the dentist needs to measure
the depth of the pockets that were scaled during your first visit.
Often, the scaling procedure works well to eliminate
the problem and you are free from further treatment other than normal
examinations. At this point you would be well served by employing
a daily regimen of preventative maintenance to insure the disease
does not return.
However, if the diseased pockets are deep and extending
into actual bone, you may need to have surgery in order to keep the
teeth. If this is the case, your dentist will refer you to a periodontist,
a doctor who specializes in periodontal disease.
The periodontist will use a surgical process to aggressively
penetrate the diseased areas and ferret out the plaque and bacteria.
The pockets where plaque resides must be sealed off so the environment
does not invite a return of the disease.
In some cases bone surgery or bone grafts may be necessary
to rebuild bone that was destroyed by the periodontal disease. If
there was substantial tissue damage grafts may need to be used to
replace the soft tissue. This procedure involves removing gum tissue
from your palate to cover the areas where severe gingivitis has penetrated
too far into the gum line.
Your dentist or oral surgeon may also recommend further
treatment and/or medications.
