Periodontal Disease

What is Periodontal Disease?

Adults over the age of 35 lose more teeth to gum disease than from decay. Three out of four adults are affected at some time in their lives. The best way to prevent cavities and periodontal diseases is through daily brushing and flossing as well as regular professional cleanings. Unfortunately, even with the most diligent home care, some form of periodontal disease can still develop. Professional intervention is necessary to prevent its progress.

What is periodontal disease?

Periodontal disease is an infection of the teeth, gums, and the bone that surrounds the teeth, and it is the leading cause of adult tooth loss.

What causes periodontal disease?

The main cause of periodontal disease is the accumulation of plaque, the sticky film of food and bacteria that forms constantly on your teeth.

If plaque is not removed each day, the bacteria in the plaque invade the spaces between the teeth and gums and begin to produce toxins. These toxins, combined with your body’s reaction to them, destroy the bone around your teeth. Once bone has been lost, it never grows back on its own.

When too much bone is lost, there is little support for the teeth. Teeth loosen, ultimately resulting in tooth loss. Other important factors affecting the health of your gums include:

• Tobacco use
• Diabetes
• Stress
• Clenching or grinding teeth
• Medications
• Poor nutrition
• Heredity

The warning signs:

If you have periodontal disease, you may experience persistent bad breath, bleeding of the gums when brushing and flossing, soft, swollen, or tender gums, gums pulling away from the teeth, or loose teeth. You may notice inflammation of the gums between the teeth.

It is also possible to have no noticeable symptoms. In fact, most people who have periodontal disease are not even aware of it.

Diagnosis and treatment

To find periodontal disease, we perform a thorough examination with a periodontal probe and x-rays at our South Burlington periodontal office. Periodontal probing measures the depth of the space between your teeth and gums. When you have periodontal disease, these spaces are called pockets. We measure from the bottom of the pocket, where the gum is attached to the tooth, to the top of the gums. A pocket depth of more than three milimeters is a sign of periodontal disease. Gums sometimes bleed during probing. This is also a sign of infection.

X-rays tell us a lot about periodontal disease. As disease progresses, x-rays will show that bone levels around your teeth have become uneven and that bone has receded away from the necks of the teeth.

Once periodontal disease has been diagnosed, we will discuss treatment options and proper home care to minimize bone loss and restore the health of your gums