PERIODONTAL DISEASE & TREATMENT

Benefits of Periodontal Treatment

Stopping periodontitis can heal your gums, prevent bone loss, and allow you to keep your natural teeth for decades longer. For patients who have already begun to experience tooth loss, periodontal treatment in Memphis can provide a stable platform for dental implants to replace individual lost teeth, or implant supported dentures to create a brand new smile.

In addition, periodontal treatment can improve your overall health. Periodontal disease can increase your risk for other health problems, such as osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Unchecked gum disease can also exacerbate existing conditions, such as diabetes and lung disease.

Do I Have Gum Disease?

Common early indicators of gum disease include bad breath (halitosis), sensitivity and/or bleeding of the gums when brushing or flossing, gums shrinking away from the teeth, and red, irritated, or swollen gums. However, periodontal disease can exist and spread even when no obvious symptoms are present.

A periodontist in Memphis can check for gum disease by examining your gums and teeth, looking for calculus (tartar) below the gumline, and measuring the depth of periodontal pockets – the space between the gum and the tooth it surrounds.

Prevention, Early Treatment, and Reversal of Gum Disease

Periodontal disease can often be prevented with a strict oral hygiene routine that includes brushing and flossing at least twice daily and seeing a dentist every six months for a cleaning. If gingivitis occurs, you can see a Memphis periodontist and have a “deep cleaning” to remove buildup of plaque and calculus below the gumline.

If needed, a non-surgical scaling and root planing can also be done to remove all traces of plaque and bacteria, and antibiotics can be administered to deepened gum pockets to get rid of infection. Periodontal disease can often be reversed by these treatments and the institution of an at-home oral health regimen.

Periodontal Disease Treatments

If gum pockets have become extremely deep, and the roots of your teeth are exposed, non-surgical or surgical intervention can often restore health to your gums and stop further damage from occurring.

• Laser Assisted New Attachment Procedure (LANAP) utilizes laser therapy to removed diseased gum tissue and stimulate new bone growth, as an alternative to traditional gum surgery techniques.
• Osseous surgery is a more traditional surgical gum treatment which can be used for severe cases in which calculus and infection have penetrated far below the gumline.

Both of these treatments can help clear infection, eliminate diseased tissue, and restore gum pockets to a normal depth. With proper follow-up care, results can be long lasting and oral health can be maintained.

PERIODONTICS PRESENTATION

To provide you with a better understanding of periodontics, we have provided the following multimedia presentation. Many common questions pertaining to periodontics are discussed.

Advanced Periodontal Solutions

If your gum disease is advanced, there are several treatment options to help stop more damage from occurring, prevent additional tooth loss, and restore health to your gums and underlying bone.

• Bone preservation and regeneration can be used when bone has started to dissolve, by encouraging new growth and stabilizing the jaw and sinus areas to prepare them for dental implantation.
• Bone grafting can be used when bone loss is already significant to provide a fresh start for your smile, by adding bone to your jaw and encouraging the growth of new bone to support dental implants.

In many cases, periodontal treatment is a required step before performing cosmetic dental procedures or full mouth reconstruction. Dr. Craddock and Dr. Godat can help you determine what periodontal care you require and create a treatment plan to restore your oral health.

Contact our Memphis periodontics office today for an appointment.