If you have poor gum health, this could mean issues with the stability of your smile and discomfort! But we can help, and do so with advanced technology. In today’s blog, Brooklyn Periodontics and Implantology talks about how we protect smiles with periodontic treatment.
The Onset of Periodontal Disease
How does periodontal disease develop? The issue occurs when the gums become inflamed, also known as gingivitis. This can happen due to factors like poor brushing and flossing, a diet high in sugar, and lack of cleanings, which allows plaque and tartar buildup to irritate and inflame the gums. Other factors include a family history of poor periodontal health, inflammatory illnesses like diabetes, and tobacco use. As part of the treatment process, we will examine your smile to assess the cause, as we may need to target these underlying factors to protect your smile from major issues, including tooth loss.
Warning Signs of Trouble
How do you know if you need treatment? Symptoms vary, but people often report soreness in the gums, as well as a redder appearance. When you brush and floss, there could be bleeding too and the tissues could swell. As the issue grows in severity, there could be gum recession as the tissues pull away, which makes teeth appear long and uneven, and which exposes portions of the roots not protected by enamel, causing sensitivity. When you experience changes to your gums like this, don’t delay, contact our team for a diagnosis and to discuss possible periodontic solutions, so you avoid the risk of missing teeth!
Diagnosis
To begin, we will need to conduct a diagnosis, and we will do so with advanced technology. For example, we will look closely at your smile with digital x-rays, so we can peer beneath the gums to assess attachment and bone loss due to the disease. We also look at the surfaces of your smile with an intraoral camera, and can obtain a panoramic view of your entire smile with CBCT imaging. With this information, we can accurately diagnose the severity of the disease, and choose the best treatment option to restore health to your smile!
Treatment with a Deep Cleaning
If we catch the issue early enough, then we will likely be able to tackle it with a deep cleaning, also known as a scaling and root planing. The deep cleaning involves the same tools as a traditional cleaning, including the ultrasonic scaling device and a manual pick, only we remove buildup from both the roots and the teeth, and from under the gums. We will numb your smile ahead of time to ensure your comfort, and this could take one visit or several, depending on the extent of your buildup. We then polish the teeth to make it harder for plaque and tartar to form before you see us again. To manage the issue, we will then follow this with a traditional and less-involved dental cleaning every three to four months.
Laser Dentistry
If you have a more severe case of the disease, then we could help with laser dentistry. We have a variety of soft tissue laser procedures available to us, and we can use them to gently remove diseased tissues with precision, and to reshape the gum line for better symmetry in the process. This also destroys harmful bacteria in the process, so we can easily manage the issue moving forward with preventive and holistic actions. Lasers provide treatment in one visit, and the areas heal quickly since we don’t need scalpels or sutures. Often, lasers rarely require the use of anesthesia at all! The risk of bleeding, swelling, and infection is much lower too.
Managing Your Gum Health
How do we manage your gum health following treatment? At home, you should always take time to brush and floss, and should avoid too much sugar in your diet and avoid tobacco products completely. In our office, we can offer supportive periodontal maintenance in the form of a cleaning to remove plaque and tartar and keep the inflammation in-check. We can also discuss special medications and more.
If you have any questions about how we protect your smile with periodontic treatment, or if you have symptoms that need attention, then contact our team today to learn more and get started!
Brooklyn Periodontics Provides Treatment for Your Gum Concerns
Our team wants to help manage your periodontal disease with precise and comfortable treatment! For more details about managing your oral health, then please call Brooklyn Periodontics & Implantology in Brooklyn, NY at (718) 444-3800 today.
