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How is Gum Disease Diagnosed and Treated?

How is Gum Disease Diagnosed?

The health of your gums and bone should be measured at every cleaning, or what we call at Total Care Dental your “wellness visit”.

Your gums are measured to see how deep they are and how healthy they are.

There is a natural pocket between the tooth and gum that is 2-3 millimeters deep.

A specialized small metal probe will be used by the dentist to check the gum depth. It measures how deep it goes into your gums in millimeters.

You might recall from your last wellness visit the dentist calling out depth numbers to their assistant during the measurement process.

It may be necessary to take a dental X-ray in some cases to check for bone loss where deeper pockets are observed.

If the depth is deeper than 3 millimeters, that is a sign that the disease has ALREADY happened.

Bone has already been destroyed and the disease has progressed and has caused or is causing damage

You should not wait to begin treatment as each day leads to further effects in the mouth and in the body.

How Is Gum Disease Treated?

Mechanical cleaning:

The bacteria in your mouth creates a sticky layer on your teeth that, if not removed, calcifies and forms tartar that you can’t remove on your own.

This tartar harbors other, more dangerous bacteria, and has to be removed if your gums and bone are to return to health.

The official name for this treatment is Scaling and Root Planing and is what is traditionally prescribed if you are diagnosed with gum disease.

This cleaning can be done with traditional hand instruments, or with specialized ultrasonic instruments.

Both can be utilized to remove all of the hard deposits on your teeth so your gums can heal.

Laser Cleaning and Disinfection:

Laser light energy is used to kill microbes over a large area of the infected root, gum tissue, and bone.

This laser light is used on the harmful bacteria in the infected tissue and kills up to 99.9% of the disease-producing bacteria.

In addition to killing bacteria and infection, the laser also stimulates stem cells in the tissues to form new connective tissues, collagen, and bone.

Your body can then heal and rebuild these lost tissues.

At the end of treatment, a second laser is used to seal the tissues against the tooth root.

This protects the pocket from germs and plaque getting back into the area while it is healing.

Ozone Cleaning and Disinfecting:

Ozone is one of the most powerful natural oxidizing agents. It kills bacteria, disinfects, stops bleeding, and stimulates wound healing.

Used in a gas or liquid form, it has been shown to reduce bone loss and infection in 80% of periodontal disease areas, often significantly.

Being a gas, ozone is able to infiltrate the tissues, the smallest fissures, wounds, and gum pockets, painlessly and without side effects.

Gum Irrigation:

Once the pockets around the teeth are clean, they can be treated with liquid medications to help the tissues heal and regenerate.

This procedure is called pocket irrigation and a variety of herbal and other health-stimulating irrigants can be used.

Total Care Dental & Wellness doesn’t recommend using harsh antimicrobials such as Chlorhexidine, because of possible tissue damage.

Dentist Vs Periodontist

The term periodontist refers to a dentist who specializes in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of periodontal disease.

Dentists may treat some less serious periodontal cases, but they typically refer their patients to periodontists for the most complicated cases.

In addition, periodontists provide a variety of other specialized services.

It’s very important to catch gum disease in its early stages and prevent it from progressing.

Don’t wait and let gum disease take control of your health.

Schedule a Health and Wellness Exam at Total Care Dental & Wellness today!

Meet Dr. David Mishler, a dedicated surgeon, and periodontist at Total Care Dental & Wellness that doesn’t accept anything less than excellence.

At Total Care Dental & Wellness, your health is our top priority and you can expect every procedure to be done in the most natural and biological way possible.

Click below to schedule!

Dr. Mishler just took great care of me and saved my upper tooth and took care of my bottom tooth. Just by looking at his whole demeanor, I could tell he wanted what was best for me and wanted to help me. He even called to see how I was doing what a Dentist does that. I can’t even say words to describe how blessed I feel for going to this place. You will not be disappointed they are the best!

~ Geni