Prior to a routine dental cleaning, our Dental Hygienists at Elma Family Dental, will measure your gums, identify and classify any gum disease, address its symptoms, halt the progression and treat the effects. Don’t sacrifice your teeth to periodontal disease. With few or no symptoms in its early stages, periodontal disease (commonly called gum disease) can sneak up on you, weakening your gums and putting you at risk for tooth and bone loss. If you have noticed bleeding while brushing or flossing, you are experiencing the early stages of the disease.
Our hygienists have received special training and are commended for their gentle and caring skills in controlling periodontal disease. Because it is the leading cause of tooth loss in adults, we are diligent in our approach to making sure periodontal disease doesn’t destroy your smile. Treatment of periodontal disease has become much more advanced with many options.
Periodontal Therapy – At your visit, the hygienists and Doctor will examine your mouth for signs of gum disease. Early-stage gum disease, called gingivitis, can cause red, swollen gums and bleeding during brushing or flossing. A cleaning and instruction on proper brushing and flossing techniques are often all that’s needed to relieve gingivitis. If your gum disease is more advanced, scaling and root planing procedures can prove beneficial. A comprehensive process of scaling away plaque buildup, cleaning exposed root surfaces, and in some cases, applying antibiotics to infected gums, can slow or even stop gum disease and relieve the symptoms.
If long-term damage has been done to the periodontal structures we can perform surgical procedures that can replace missing bone and tissues or allow easier cleaning and home care to stabilize your teeth and maintain them. We will customize your cleaning schedule based on your unique oral condition. Patients whose teeth incur more plaque buildup may benefit from three or four hygiene appointments each year.
Gum Disease – If you show signs of gum disease, such as red, swollen gums and chronic bad breath, we will act fast to treat the infection, restore optimal oral health, and protect your smile from recurrence. We stress regular flossing and thorough brushing for good reason. Good daily homecare removes plaque that can invade below the gum line, cause infection, and lead to painful gum disease, the primary cause of tooth loss in American adults. Learn more about gum disease here.
Mouth-Body Connection – Scientific research continues to support the direct relationship between gum disease and serious systemic diseases. The same bacteria that cause periodontal disease enter the bloodstream and can be directly associated with systemic diseases such as heart attacks, strokes, or diabetes. Women with periodontitis may have an increased risk for delivering pre-term, low birth weight babies. Preliminary evidence suggests that periodontal infections may also be associated with lung disease and other remote site infections. We have many advanced treatments that can keep the disease from ruining your smile.
