Non-Surgical Gum Disease Therapy Can Help Restore Your Oral Health

When you struggle with gum disease, it is incredibly important that you find the right gum disease therapy to help. Gum disease is not something to ignore, thinking it will go away on its own. Unfortunately, once you get gum disease, it is only going to progress until either you have it treated, or you lose your teeth. Ideally, you will come in and get treatment before your gum disease affects your smile. Here are some types of gum disease therapy that do not involve surgery, that are often very effective.

First of All, What Is Gum Disease?

Gum disease is literally a disease that affects your gums, and most call it gingivitis. It is when bacteria get between your teeth and gums, and form inflammation. This can cause a lot of swelling in your gums, bleeding gums, and eventually, can also hurt more parts of your mouth. When gum disease progresses, it goes from gingivitis to periodontitis. At this stage, the gums are not the only part of the mouth affected. The disease progresses to damage your teeth, which could end up falling out due to instability. It also hurts the underlying jaw bone. This can cause the bone to regress and dissolve, leaving no structure to hold your teeth in place. If you do not get any type of gum disease therapy, you will lose your teeth, and your jaw will begin to reabsorb.

Gum disease can also harm other parts of your body. When you have gum disease, there are bacteria within your gum tissue. These, along with the tartar that caused the gum disease in the first place, can be harmful to your body. The plaque from your teeth can move throughout your body, and settle in other places. If this plaque lands in your arteries or in your heart, it can lead to heart trouble. There is even evidence that shows the plaque related to gum disease could be a contributing factor to dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease. The sooner you get gum disease diagnosed and treated, the better.

Non-Surgical Gum Disease Therapy Options

There are two main types of non-surgical gum disease therapy. The first is scaling and root planing. This is basically a deep cleaning of your teeth. The other are trays of medication. Both of these can be effective options of gum disease therapy. When used together, it can help reduce and even stop the progression of gum disease. However, in the event that these two options of gum disease therapy do not work, surgery may be the only option remaining.

What Is Scaling and Root Planing?

Scaling and root planing are just one form of gum disease therapy. This is a deep cleaning that goes beneath the gum line and cleans down to the root of the teeth. During scaling, an electronic scaler removes tartar build up and cleans if off of the teeth. During root planing, more tools go down and completely clean off the root of the teeth. During both of these processes, the gaps between the gums and the teeth get clean. All bacteria that were living in this gap are removed, and the area is left sanitary. By the time the procedure is done, there should be no bacteria left between the teeth and gums. Once the procedure is done, the gums begin to adhere more firmly to the teeth. This is what protects the gums from having bacteria move into that space again.

Are Trays an Effective Form of Gum Disease Therapy?

Trays are another effective type of gum disease therapy. This is when molds are made of your teeth, and custom trays are created. Those trays are then packed with medication, which you bite down into. The medication then sinks into your gum tissue and kills off any bacteria left behind. Patients use these trays at home. They deliver the medication we prescribe directly on to the tissues that need them most. These trays are safe to use, according to the FDA. Plus, they have been proven effective. This lets patients have more they can do to help fight back against gum disease.

Turn to Professionals for Gum Disease Therapy

When you struggle with gum disease, it is not going to go away on its own. You need to get professional gum disease therapy to help rid your body of this disease. The more progressed your gum disease gets, the more damage it does. If you get gum disease therapy early, some, if not all, of the damage is reversible. However, as the damage progresses, it can no longer be reversed.
Coming in and getting gum disease therapy in our professional office allows you to get the health of your mouth back. Gum disease does not hurt when you first get it. What happens is that by the time you feel it, it has already progressed. If it is no longer in its initial stages, you need more advanced gum disease therapy than a simple cleaning.

Come in today, and let us examine your mouth. We can then talk to you about the state your oral health is in, and what steps need to be taken to correct it. The more proactive you are about taking care of your mouth, the less likely your teeth are to succumb to the effects of gum disease. We will help you get the treatment you need to have a healthy mouth again. We have the experience and the technology to help restore your oral health. Do not wait another day. It could be one day too many.

For more information on what you can do to restore your oral health once you have gum disease, contact the professionals here at Walker Periodontics & Implant Dentistry. You can contact us by calling (972)462-9800. Let us help you get your oral health back by pairing you with the right gum disease therapy.