Why You Should Visit a Periodontist if You Have Gum Disease

Visiting a periodontist is a wise idea when it comes to treating gum disease. While a traditional family or general dentist can help patients with gum disease, they only do this occasionally. General dentists tend to tend to focus more on providing preventive care and treating teeth that are suffering from decay or infections.

We do not treat patients with cavities or offer routine dental examinations. Instead, we help patients who are suffering from gum disease. Thus, we focus more on providing this type of care, dealing with gum disease more frequently, and applying solutions that other professionals may not offer at a family dentist office.

Treatment options

As a periodontist, our focus is on the health of the gums and as such, we offer many ways to treat gum disease.  We will typically start treatment with the least invasive and most simple solution, known as a deep cleaning. The deep cleaning will remove any plaque or tartar that builds upon the surface of the teeth under the gum line.

It is impossible to remove the plaque in these areas at home with floss or a toothbrush. Once plaque builds up in these difficult to reach places, the only way to remove it is with professional assistance. Doing so is critical because plaque will begin to irritate the gums until they become swollen, red and pull away from the tooth structure. The longer the plaque remains on the teeth, the worse the gum disease will become.

Eventually, pockets will form in the gum tissue, the teeth will be vulnerable to infections or become loose and fall out. This is the worst case scenario that can often be prevented by performing a deep cleaning.

More aggressive action

Once the gum tissue begins to recede and pockets form, it may be necessary to take more aggressive action. At this point, a gum grafting procedure may be required. This is where either real or synthetic tissue is sutured to the gums so that they can be secured back to the tooth structure.

This procedure may not be necessary with all of the gum tissue. For example, much of the gum disease may be treated by a deep cleaning and a gum graft only required in several areas. We will determine this after conducting an initial examination.

Improving your comfort

Living with gum disease can be painful. With the gums sore and swollen, it may be difficult to brush teeth or eat anything that is even slightly abrasive or difficult to chew. In this case, treating gum disease can be a matter of improving health and also a way to improve a person’s quality of life.  It is best to take this action when gum disease is in its early stage and can be resolved with a deep cleaning.

However, even when a surgical gum procedure is necessary, it is important to have the procedure as soon as possible so that the condition cannot worsen. If it is allowed to do so, the damage will be far worse. This is especially true if teeth begin to fall out.

As a periodontist, we can help to treat gum disease regardless of what stage it is in. We recommend calling our clinic and scheduling an appointment so that we can conduct an examination and discuss treatment options.