Periodontal treatment

 

Periodontal Cleanings

Some times a regular cleaning is not enough. Serveral people may require higher care than normal levels of tartar or may be more susceptible to periodontal disease. In this case, deeper periodontal cleaning are necessary. Not only periodontal cleaning can removes 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 professiona 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 happen in a cyclic manner, with bursts of destruction and periods of inactivity.

Periodontal treatment aims to:

- Removing the irritants that may be associated with the active destructive phase of the disease

- Maintaining your gum tissues in the inactive state.

- Advising you how to keep your gums as healthy as possible.

Figure 1. Periodontal disease showing loss of bone

 

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.

You are the person who plays the most important role in your periodontal treatment.

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.

Figure 2. Mouth with severe Periodontal disease

What does periodontal treatment involve?

Development of a plan for periodontal treatment is an ordered sequence of dental procedures undertaken to restore your teeth and gums to health. This plan will organise the different treatments to be used into a specific order to get the best results.

 

Periodontal treatment usually involves oral hygiene instruction and removal of plaque and calculus build-up. It may also involve a review of medical conditions, filling replacement and advice to give up smoking.

Oral hygiene instruction

The first goal of oral hygiene instruction is to improve your ability to remove plaque from your teeth. Your dental health professional will assist you with the correct techniques for brushing and flossing your teeth. Some recommends to help control plaque build-up, like mouth-rinses, inter-dental toothbrushes, toothpastes and disclosing solutions. Instruction will be given on their use, and how often they should be used to be effective.

Removal of plaque and calculus build-up

Your dental health professional can remove plaque and calculus that has built up over a period of year. Plaque is a sticky, colourless film of bacteria that builds up on the teeth and is the major cause of gingivitis and periodontitis. Calculus is plaque tha has hardened over time (often called "tartar").

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.

Root planing is a more time consuming procedure that involves scraping and smoothing the root surfaces of your teeth. Gum tissues can more firmly reattach to roots that are clean and smooth.

Scaling                                                               Root Planing

Filling replacement

Some of your fillings and crowns may be contributing to the inflammation of your gums. These may need to be reshaped or replaced to provide surfaces that are easier to keep clean.

Figure 6. Fillings or crowns may need to be smoothed or replaced

Quitting Smoking

Smoking increases the risk of having more rapidly destructive periodontal disease. It also places you at risk of mouth cancers. If you are a smoker, your dental professional will probably advise you on the availability of "quit-smoking" programs and materials.

Your dentist may refer you to a periodontist – a specialist in gum diseases