What causes gum disease?

Gum disease is caused by the bacteria in plaque (sticky colorless film on your teeth). If plaque is not removed by efficient daily brushing and flossing, plaque can build up into tartar (calculus). These will eventually infect not only your gums but also the underlying bone.

Other factors are:

• Smoking and tobacco use
• Medication used for BP, diabetes etc.,
• Stress
• Diabetes
• Pregnancy (due to hormonal changes)
• Chronic ailments like cancer, AIDS etc.,

Early symptoms of gum disease:

Gum diseases are painless until it progresses to advanced stage. That is why it is called as a silent disease. When the disease is mild, only your gums are infected at that time. If you notice a bit of blood when you brush that could be an early warning sign. If you don’t treat it, the infection can travel into your bone.

Visit us if you notice any of the following:

• Gums that bleed easily
• Swollen and red gums
• Bad breath
• Pus formation around teeth
• Pulling away of gums from teeth
• Loosening of teeth
• If your bite is changed

Treatment of gum disease:

Depending upon the severity of gum disease any of the following procedures may be advised:

Scaling and Root Planing (Deep teeth cleaning):

Scaling is nothing but removal of calculus (tartar) and plaque by a dental professional. The cleaning is especially done below the gum line. Root planing is an additional procedure done along with scaling for gum disease. Root planing removes any remaining calculus and smoothens root surface.

Curettage:

Removal of any diseased gum tissue from underneath the gums which leads to healing of the infected gum area

Medications for gum disease:

Sometimes medications like antibiotic gels, antimicrobial mouthwashes or tablets may be advised to curb the action of germs causing the gum disease.

Flap Surgery:

Around the first stage of gum disease, dental pockets begin to form. Pockets are openings found between the gums and the teeth where the gums should normally be close and tight against the tooth. Flap surgery is a procedure where the gums are lifted back while plaque and calculus are removed from deeper pockets.

Bone and soft tissue grafts:

A bone graft is used to recreate bone where there is severe bone loss due to gum disease. Soft tissue grafts cover up root surfaces exposed by the receding gums. This can help reduce sensitivity and protect the root surfaces.

At R.K. Dental Clinic, Laser therapy for gum diseases are painless!

Apart from the routine treatment methodology, we are specialized in doing the flap surgery with lasers. It is called LANAP (Laser Assisted New Attachment Procedure)