As people grow older, the chances of developing more severe gum disease can increase for those that do not maintain good oral hygiene.  Millions of people will end up unfortunately with periodontitis, a severe form of gum disease.  Some of these people may end up not just losing just one tooth, rather they may end up losing most or in some cases, all their teeth.  In the US, there are millions of people who are edentulous. 

That is they have no natural teeth in their mouth and are most likely wearing full dentures.  Periodontists are dental specialists that can help treat bad gum disease and try to help people save their teeth.  Like any disease, the earlier one treats it, the better the possible outcome.  We will be discussing what Local Periodontists do and the dental services they provide in this perio blog.  We will be discussing the various forms of gum disease as well in this periodontal blog.

Periodontitis And Perio Treatment Discussion

Some studies have shown over 40% of American adults have some form of periodontal disease.   Those are staggering numbers, since most periodontal disease can be reduced significantly if people maintain good oral hygiene and go in for regular dental exam & prophy. In this local periodontist blog about periodontal disease,  we will provide more periodontal dental information to our reader's and discuss how periodontal disease can progress.

Online Periodontal Discussion

One of the most common reasons adults lose their teeth is from Periodontitis.  In this period Dental Chat article, we will be discussing severe gum problems (Periodontitis) and periodontist treatment options.

Periodontitis is a severe gum infection which attacks the soft tissues and damages the oral jaw bone that gives support to teeth & maintains healthy gum / bone structure. If this type of perio disease is not properly handle or taken care of, it may lead to loss of the tooth or the teeth may become loose (teeth mobility). It is the most common gum diseases but it is curable. It can result from poor oral hygiene or personal hygiene to the teeth, as well as from medical conditions.

Taking care of the teeth by brushing twice in a day, flossing and also seeing the dentist for checkups regularly can improve the chances of treating periodontitis and even prevent developing it.-

 Periodontitis Symptoms Or Major Gum Disease 

Here are the Dental Symptoms of period disease & what to look for?

There are many ways to check to see if people have healthy gums?  For one, the gums will look more pink or pale pink in color. The gums will also be fairly firm and will notice that the gums cover most of the neck of the teeth. Since the gums fit snuggly, there will be smaller gum pockets, when the hygienist or dentist is doing an oral exam.  

People that do have gum disease and severe gum disease such as periodontitis, can be diagnosed fairly easily by a dentist.  Your dentist will measure the gum pockets around the teeth and also look at dental x-rays.  With the dental x-rays, your dentist or periodontist will notice moderate to severe bone loss in the jaw around the teeth. 

There are also some periodontal conditions can notice on there own - a tell-tale sign that they may have periodontitis or periodontal gum disease can check for certain signs.  Patients can also do some observations of their own to see how their gums are.  For one, if the gum is red, puffy and bleeds easily when flossing - then these are signs that should visit a dentist or periodontist and have the gums checked out. 

Other signs that may signal have gum disease is bad breath, spaces or gaps developing between teeth, and loose teeth.  If have poor oral health, and the teeth start to feel mobile - then this may signal have some form of moderate to severe gum disease.  Teeth should not normally be loose or mobile.  This happens briefly when young adults are having braces or orthodontic treatment.  Other than that, teeth should not be loose or wiggly.  If they are, see a dentist and have them checked.

Periodontal Categories / Various levels of Gum Disease

There are differ categories of periodontitis. The most occurring type of periodontitis is a category which is usually termed as Chronic Periodontitis - this is the most occurring type of periodontal disease or perio illness. It is primarily or usually found in adults,  though that does not mean children are not affected.

That is, it can occur in youngsters as well. This type is usually caused by over time buildup of infections. Chronic Periodontitis usually occurs slowly and generally will over time get worse. This type of perio disease causes severe damage to the gum, teeth and bone of the mouth - which may cause of bone loss and loss of teeth, if not treated.

Another type of perio disease is Aggressive Periodontitis, which usually begins in childhood or early adulthood.  This type of period disease usually affects a smaller number of people. It tends to affect families and causes rapid progression of bone and tooth loss if untreated.

Necrotizing periodontal disease is usually featured with the death of the gum tissues, supporting bone and the tooth ligament.  Necrotizing periodontal disease usually happens because there is no supply of blood to all these parts of the mouth. This is usually found in people with immune system conditions, such as being immuno suppressed with ailments that may  include HIV patients, cancer patients and various other conditions.

 Finding a Local Dentist to treat gum disease

Most time dentists have their own schedule for checkup hour. If there are any signs of periodontitis notice in your teeth, make sure you see a dentist as soon as you can.  The earlier you take care of your teeth > the better the chance of success or at least reducing the speed of illness & taking care of any disease. At an early stage, can better try to prevent damage and reverting the damages done by periodontitis.  The longer Periodontitis has been around in the mouth, the more damage to the jaw bone and teeth it has probably caused.

Major Causes of Periodontitis

For people who do Not maintain regular brushing & flossing, they increase their likelihood exponentially of having gum disease and possibly periodontitis.  Following good oral hygiene at home & of course, visiting your dentist regularly.  We will discuss this frequently, as this is one of the best ways to try to prevent gum disease.

One of the first signs you will notice from periodontitis is plaque that is starting to build up. Plaque generally starts with a sticky film which are made of bacteria and food that one eats. If good home dental care / good oral hygiene and attention is not given to it, the plaque can build up fairly rapidly.  Once the plaque starts calcifying, then the problem with gum disease increases.

The dental plaque will start to build when the bacteria in the mouth form a reaction with sugar and starches in your mouth. This can be avoided by making sure you brush your teeth at least twice in a day and flossing once a day.   The other is to go have regular prophy at dental office with hygienist or dentist. This can help to remove calcified plaque, though they can reform quickly, if good home oral hygiene is not maintained.

If plaque is allowed to stay in the mouth and not cleaned, then this plaque can calcify and become what is called calculus. The most difficult to remove is the one found under the tartar. So it means the liner you have the plague on your teeth the more destruction it will affect your teeth. This tartar can be removed by flossing and brushing your teeth regularly. To get rid of this, you need to see a dentist to do prophy (cleaning) and if have a lot of plaque build-up under the gums, will need to do a scaling and root planing.

Gingivitis can be caused by plaque which is the mildest state of periodontal diseases. When have inflammation and irritation around the gums of teeth or base of the teeth (gingiva), then this inflammation is generally referred to as Gingivitis. These diseases can be retracted using a professional treatment from the dentist and good oral care and hygiene.

Frequent gum inflammation can also lead to periodontitis, eventually causing pockets to develop between your gums and teeth that fill with plaque, tartar and bacteria. In time, these pockets become deeper, filling with more bacteria. If not treated, these deep infections cause a loss of tissue and bone, and ultimately you may lose one or more teeth. Also, ongoing chronic inflammation can put a strain on your immune system.

 What can cause Periodontitis?

There are many risk factors that can increase the chances of periodontal gum disease. On top of this list, is poor oral hygiene. Here are the type of risk factors that can increase your periodontitis includes poor oral health habits of not brushing regularly, if have existing gingivitis, obesity, smoking & chewing tobacco, hormonal changes due from pregnancy for instance, genetics and if have pre-existing medical conditions such as diabetes.  One thing to keep in mind, is that with aging - if have gum disease, your gums and done loss around the teeth may happen more and more.  If the bone loss in the jaw is severe, if can lead to teeth mobility and teeth loss.

Complications with Periodontitis

Periodontitis can lead to decay and loss of teeth, as well as bone loss in the jaw. Research has demonstrated that bacteria which causes Periodontitis can gain entrance to your blood stream through your gum tissues which may affects your lungs, and your heart function. Hence, perio disease is not good for your overall health.  Also Periodontitis is associated with respiratory disorder, coronary artery diseases / stroke, rheumatoid arthritis and other medical problems.

 Prevention of Periodontitis 

Having good oral hygiene is a great way of trying to avoid Periodontitis or period problems. Treating Periodontitis is not easy, it is best to maintain good oral health care regimens, to try to avoid gum problems.  Going and seeing a dentist for a prophy / dental exam usually once every 6 months is a great way of trying to avoid bad gums problems.

Oral Hygiene Recommendations

The importance of maintaining good toothbrushing habits and doing daily flossing is of optimal importance.  - as well as getting proper dental care at a dental office. Proper tooth brushing is very important.  Proper toothbrushing is not too aggressive, should be part of oral care daily activities and should be done right.  Using a hard toothbrush will most likely Not remove calculus and can wear away the important enamel layer of the teeth.  If have calcified plaque, should see a dentist.

 Dental Prophy  and Dental Cleanings Discussion

Home oral care and visiting the dental office regularly is keys to good oral health.  This can not be mentioned enough.  Dental offices have either the dentist or the licensed hygienist peform dental prophy (dental cleaning) - to remove plaque and calculus. As was mentioned earlier in this dental prophy blog portion of this dentist article, get a dental prophy and dental checkup your of your teeth and mouth, usually twice a year.

Your dentist or dental hygienist will not only do a prophy (dental cleaning), but will also do probing of your gums.  This probing of gums, is to see or check the overall health of your mouth. Deep pockets are generally not a good sign, while having within normal limit gum pockets is a good sign that your teeth are healthy. Also, dental xrays may or may not be needed. This is another tool that dentists use to check for healthy gums and make sure do not have major gum disease.  

Here is another Periodontal Dentist Blog about swollen gums - here is the link to this Dental Gum Chat article   https://dentalchat.com/swollen-painful-gum-question-and-oral-hygiene-chat

 Emergency Periodontal 

We did perio chat, online periodontitis chatting and did do periodontal blogging in this dentalchat article. We discussed the importance of having good oral hygiene and treating periodontitis as early as possible. We are Blogging about Oral Care, Discussing Oral Hygiene, Online Periodontal Treatment Chat with us and Perio Disease Chatting online - as well as discussing various other dental topics at DentalChat.  We welcome people asking us Dental Questions at DentalChat.  We are @ Dental Chat networking with dental health care professionals.