According to the CDC, almost half of Americans over 30 suffer from periodontal disease to some degree. And that number goes up as people increase in age. Roughly 70% of those over 65 have periodontal disease, which is more commonly called gum disease.
If you have gum disease and decide not to do anything about it, it could potentially lead to tooth loss over time. It could also result in you having to get dentures.
For these reasons, you should look into the different types of therapy that can be used to treat gum disease. Periodontal therapy can help you get gum disease under control and improve your dental health in no time.
So, what can you expect during periodontal therapy? That’s what we’re going to discuss in this article today. It should help you use periodontal therapy to your advantage as you move forward.
Find out more about it below.
Finding a Dentist Who Specializes in Periodontal Therapy
Are your gums always swollen? Do they feel very tender to the touch? Have you noticed your gums bleeding when you brush or floss?
If you just answered “yes” to any of these questions, it’s a sign you might have gum disease. It’ll be important for you to start looking into taking advantage of periodontal therapy treatments.
Before you can do this, though, you’ll need to find a dentist in your area who specializes in periodontal therapy. Not all dentists are going to be able to provide you with this type of oral care therapy in the Richmond, Texas area. It’ll be up to you to find a dental clinic like Sweet Tooth Smiles Dentistry and Orthodontics that can assist you throughout the periodontal therapy process.
Getting Diagnosed With Periodontal Disease
Once you locate a dentist in the Richmond, TX area that can provide you with periodontal therapy, you might be ready to dive headfirst into the treatment options they’ll be able to deliver. But prior to doing this, you’ll need to be officially diagnosed with periodontal disease.
There is a painstaking process that’ll be associated with diagnosing gum disease. It’ll involve a dentist taking measurements of the gum collars that sit around each of your teeth.
Under normal circumstances, these gum collars will usually be between 2 and 3 millimeters deep. A dentist will measure these gum collars for you, and if they’re any deeper than this, it’ll indicate the presence of gum disease.
A dentist will also have digital X-rays of your teeth taken so that they can assess:
- The texture of your gums
- The shape of your gums and teeth
- The density of the bone that surrounds your teeth
All of this will allow a dentist to paint a much clearer picture of what kind of condition your gums are in. It’ll give both you and your dentist a better idea of how bad your gum disease is at this time.
Putting Together a Treatment Plan for Periodontal Disease
There isn’t really a one-size-fits-all treatment plan for dealing with periodontal disease. Everyone will go through a slightly different form of periodontal therapy since everyone will be working their way through gum disease to a different degree.
With this in mind, your dentist will need to come up with a customized treatment plan for your periodontal disease. This plan will be based largely on how far you’ve allowed gum disease to progress.
If you haven’t experienced much bone loss around your teeth yet, you might be able to get away with only needing to have one or two teeth cleanings done during periodontal therapy. But if you have considerable bone loss, it’ll be a different story. You’ll need to have a more advanced form of periodontal therapy performed.
It might play out something like this:
- Your gums will be numbed so that a deep cleaning can take place
- You’ll undergo a deep cleaning that’ll take place both above and below your gum lines
- Your gum collars that are infected and inflamed will be meticulously cleaned out using specialized instruments
- Your teeth will be polished
More often than not, this advanced form of periodontal therapy will typically play out over the course of several dentist visits. It can be a very time-consuming process that’ll require close attention to detail.
Practicing Good Dental Care Habits at Home
The customized treatment plan that your dentist uses to deal with your periodontal disease will work wonders when you’re in their office. But it’ll be up to you to bring your gum disease to a screeching halt by continuing to keep your teeth and gums clean at home.
From the moment your dentist finishes a deep cleaning in their office, the bacteria from your gum disease will begin to attack your teeth and gums again. It’s why it’ll be very important for you to brush and floss your teeth accordingly at home.
Your dentist will provide you with specific instructions on how to practice good dental care habits at home. They might also recommend that you start using an electric toothbrush and/or a Waterpik so that you can clean your teeth and gums as thoroughly as possible on your own.
Seeking More Professional Periodontal Therapy Treatments
No matter how hard you work to clean your teeth and gums at home, there may be parts of your mouth that’ll be more difficult to reach than others. It’ll put you in a position where you might start to see signs of gum disease start to emerge again.
Because of this, you’re going to need to continue to seek additional periodontal therapy treatments from your doctor several times each year in most cases. You should head back to your dentist’s office as often as necessary to help keep gum disease at bay.
If you don’t respond well to periodontal therapy, your dentist might also suggest that you see a periodontist. They’ll be able to figure out why your gum disease continues to progress even though you’re taking full advantage of periodontal therapy.
Schedule Periodontal Therapy With Us Today
Would you like to see how effective periodontal therapy can be? Sweet Tooth Smiles Dentistry and Orthodontics can provide you with it to get your gum disease under control.
Contact us to today schedule an initial consultation for periodontal therapy in Richmond, TX.
