Without proper care of the teeth and the gingiva, periodontal disease could easily take over anyone’s mouth and could possibly mean the end to the teeth. This serious disease can be prevented or treated at an early stage by simply brushing and flossing.
Periodontal disease is an infection of the structures that surround the teeth. It begins with food debris and plaque not being brushed or flossed off and they turn into bacteria that worsens and leads to puffiness in the gingiva. Plaque must be taken off the teeth by brushing and flossing twice a day to prevent infection, but it only takes 24 hours for plaque to build up again. A few things that can lower your defenses, and help cause some form of periodontal disease, are: smoking, diabetes, stress, medicine, pregnancy, puberty, AIDS, HIV, cancer, and even diet, to name a few. Soda and certain types of food can also affect the teeth.
Gingivitis is the first stage of periodontal disease. Most people do not find out they have this condition until a dentist advises them of it. Signs of gingivitis are: red gums, inflamed gums, bleeding while brushing and/or flossing, sensitive gums, possible bad breath, or bad taste. Gingivitis can easily be treated by brushing, flossing and using a mouth wash and no real pain is usually associated with gingivitis, which means that gingivitis is easily reversible with good oral home care and professional treatment.
After gingivitis is left untreated, it can turn into mild periodontitis, moderate periodontitis, and finally advanced periodontitis. With time, plaque can build under the gum line and toxins can spread. The bacteria causes puffiness and redness, which is the body’s way of warning you something is wrong. Signs of these forms of periodontitis are: more pronounced bleeding, longer looking teeth, gum boils, abscesses, periodontal pockets, and mobility of the teeth. When some of these signs are reached, there might still be a chance of keeping the teeth if the person see’s a dentist as soon as possible and gets treatment, but this is when the structures that support the teeth are broken down and pretty much destroyed. After the disease is continually untreated, the teeth may become so mobile that they might have to be removed. This disease can affect anywhere from one tooth to all thirty-two teeth. After the age of 35, three out of four adults have some form of periodontal disease, which can lead to tooth loss.
If treatment is needed, a root planing or a scaling might be the procedures to be considered. Scaling is a procedure to remove plaque and calculus around the tooth surfaces and root planing is the smoothing of the tooth surfaces to promote re-growth and reattachment of the gingiva to the tooth.
