Symptoms of Periodontal Disease
 Brushing and flossing are two essential habits for maintaining optimal oral health. The ADA recommends brushing at least twice a day as well as flossing at least once a day. In addition to these daily habits, it is also important that you have your mouth professionally cleaned and examined once every six months. All of these habits help you to maintain optimal oral health, allowing you to prevent serious oral health complications. Without proper oral hygiene, your risk for developing periodontal disease increases. Sunnyside Dentistry can help you to identify the symptoms so you can seek treatment right away.
What is Periodontal Disease?
Periodontal disease is a condition that is caused by a bacterial infection in your mouth. You might know it better as gum disease. Periodontal disease occurs when bacteria and plaque buildup in your mouth and irritate your gums. This irritation triggers an inflammatory response that causes your gums to swell.
Eventually, the gums begin to pull away from your teeth, which leads to the formation of periodontal pockets. Bacteria gets trapped in these pockets. Here, they continue to attack your gums and also begin attacking your periodontal ligaments and jawbone. The longer periodontal disease goes untreated, the worse it becomes. Ultimately, the condition can result in tooth loss.
Symptoms of Periodontal Disease
There are many symptoms associated with periodontal disease. The type of symptoms you experience will depend upon how advanced the condition is.
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Your gums are red and swollen. These, along with bleeding when you brush and floss, are signs of the first stage of periodontal disease, also called gingivitis. This stage is the most easily treated. However, the symptoms often go unnoticed or ignored.
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Your gums begin receding. As periodontal pockets grow deeper, the infected tissue begins to die off. This causes your gum line to recede. Your teeth begin to appear longer and your risk for cavities increases. You might notice small spaces suddenly appearing between your teeth. As your roots become exposed, you may also be faced with tooth sensitivity.
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You suffer from chronic bad breath. Bacteria and food particles trapped below your gum line can contribute to bad breath. Because this buildup cannot be removed from below the gums, your breath remains bad even after brushing, flossing, using mouthwash, or chewing gum.
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Your teeth become loose and unstable. As bacteria attack your periodontal ligaments and jawbone are attacked by bacteria, these supporting structures become weak. Your teeth become loose as a result and may begin shifting out of alignment. This can throw off your bite, affecting your smile, and causing other issues such as cavities, tooth damage, and poor digestion.
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You begin losing teeth or need teeth extracted. When the supporting structures are too weak, they can no longer keep your teeth in place. This leads to your teeth falling out. |
How is Periodontal Disease Treated?
There are several different treatments available for periodontal disease. The exact treatment you receive will depend upon how advanced the condition is when you come in. Treatments include:
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Prophylaxis. This is a regular tooth cleaning. If you are in the very early stages of periodontal disease, additional cleaning can help to restore your oral health.
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Scaling and root planing. This is a deep cleaning of your teeth.
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Pocket reduction surgery. This is a surgical procedure that is performed when your periodontal pockets are too deep to effectively clean with other treatments.
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Osseous surgery. If bacteria have affected your bone, osseous surgery smooths the hard tissue, allowing your gums to heal. It is often performed in conjunction with pocket reduction surgery.
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Soft tissue grafting. A soft tissue graft restores a healthy, natural gum line following gum recession.
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Bone grafting. A bone graft restores missing bone mass in your jaw. It is often performed before implant placement if the bone is too weak to support the implant posts on its own. |
When symptoms of periodontal disease arise, getting treatment right away is essential. Call Sunnyside Dentistry today at (503) 451-5104 to schedule your consultation.
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