How is periodontal disease treated?

If gum disease or gingivitis is left untreated, it may worsen and take the form of periodontal disease. There are different stages of periodontal disease that may require different treatment. But the most common way to treat periodontal disease is with deep scaling.

Deep scaling involves removal of dental tartar from the surface of the teeth. A dental specialist with expertise in treating periodontal disease and sufficient past experience is the best person to tackle this disease. The dentist will usually perform the deep scaling process in two stages, involving two visits of the patient to the dentist’s office. The first half of the mouth is treated in the first visit, and the other half in the second visit.

Periodontal disease process is caused by bacteria in the tartar or calculus deposits below the gum. Tartar or calculus occurs when plaque sits on the teeth for a long period of time. It mineralizes and becomes a haven for the bacteria. To treat this condition, first the treatment area is numbed with a local anesthetic, and the dentist reaches deep below the gum and scales the area very aggressively.

Laser technology has also been used to treat periodontal disease in recent years. Its success has encouraged more and more dentists to use laser in treating this disease. Laser helps to decontaminate the site and the gum pockets by killing the bacteria. Furthermore, laser is also helpful in promoting the healing of the gum tissue.

If periodontal disease has reached an advanced stage, the dentist may have no other option left except surgery. In the surgical procedure, the dentist exposes the root surfaces, cleans the deposits off, cuts some of the gum away, and re-positions the gum to a new spot lower on the tooth so that it becomes more cleanable. This enables the patients to take better care of their gums.

If periodontal disease has reached a very late stage where the tooth has become very mobile and lost more than 50 percent of its bone attachment, such teeth may need to be extracted and there is no way to save them.

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