Living With Healthy Hunger Health Blog
Gum disease is a common problem, but one that can be easily treated with proper care. It’s estimated that about 90% of people over 40 suffer from gum disease. Even if you brush two times a day and floss as often as recommended by dentists, retaining a healthy mouth is not enough to prevent gum disease. One of the best preventative measures against gum disease is going to a Plymouth dentist for routine dental check-ups.
A dentist can treat gum disease in several ways depending on what stage the disease is in. If you have gingivitis, professional cleaning is needed to get rid of the plaque and food debris that has accumulated on your teeth. However, if you have advanced gum disease, where the tissue and bone supporting teeth are being destroyed, surgery may be required to prevent the loss of teeth.
Here are the most common treatments for gum disease.
- Scaling and root planning
When you have gum disease, plaque and other hard-to-remove soft deposits can build up around your teeth. This can cause irritation and pain. In such cases, your dentist may recommend a scaling and root planing procedure. The dentist will scrape the deposits off your teeth and smooth out the surfaces around them to make it easier for plaque-fighting mouthwash or toothpaste to reach hard-to-reach areas. Special instruments will be used to clean out all of the soft deposits from between your teeth, gums, and below the gum line.
- Tissue regeneration
When plaque and hard deposits are very hard to remove, your dentist may suggest a tissue regeneration procedure. This will help to regenerate the affected tissue, which allows it to be replaced by new healthy tissues.
- Pocket elimination surgery
If you have advanced gum disease, your doctor may recommend pocket elimination surgery. The surgeon will remove the infected tissue and bone and then fit the jaw with a patch of fake material made from synthetic materials. This way, it will be easier for you to keep your mouth clean because food debris won’t build up in the gaps between the teeth and gums.
- Dental implants
If you have lost all or most of your teeth due to gum disease, you might want to consider getting dental implants, which are small screws made with titanium that are implanted in the jawbone where the tooth was lost. This serves as an artificial root for a false tooth and will allow the replacement of multiple teeth at once.
