Periodontics

Periodontal diseases take on many different forms, but is usually a result of bacterial infection of the gums. Untreated, it often leads to tooth loss and alveolar bone loss.

Periodontitis, or Pyorrhea, is a disease involving inflammation of the gingiva, which, often persisting unnoticed for many years in a patient, can result in loss of clinical periodontal attachment between the teeth and the surrounding alveolar bone. This differs from gingivitis, where there is inflammation of the gingiva but no loss of clinical attachment; thus, it is the loss of clinical attachment around that differentiates between these two oral inflammatory diseases. If left untreated, periodontitis causes progressive bone loss around teeth, looseness of the teeth and eventual tooth loss. Periodontitis is a very common disease affecting approximately 50% of U.S. adults over the age of 30 years. Periodontitis is thought to occur in people who have preexisting gingivitis - an inflammation that is limited to the soft tissues surrounding the tooth and does not cause attachment or bone loss. The cause of gingivitis is the accumulation of a bacterial matrix at the gum line, called dental plaque. In some people, gingivitis progresses to periodontitis - the gum tissues separate from the tooth and, with loss of periodontal ligaments, form a periodontal pocket.

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• Treatment Options

  It is difficult to induce the body to repair bone that has been destroyed due to periodontitis. Much depends on exactly how much bone was lost and the architectural configuration of the remaining bone.

  Sometimes bone grafting surgery may be tried, depending on the nature of the bone loss.

  Dentists sometimes attempt to treat patients with periodontitis by placing tiny wafers dispensing antibiotics underneath the gumline in affected areas. This may help to recover about one millimeter of bone, but it is questionable if this is of significant therapeutic value.

  Alternatively, regular subgingival flushing with an anti-calculus composition can dissolve subgingival calculus (tartar) thus facilitating natural healing without surgery. This process is widely used for supragingival tartar via tartar-control toothpastes. Subgingival application of an anti-calculus composition requires a subgingival syringe or an oral irrigator.

The information provided on surgeryBA.com is designed to support, not replace, the relationship between a patient and his/her physician. Individual results may vary according to each patient's individual objectives, health, and circumstances. The information provided here stems from our professional experience with patients and from our doctor's advise.