Gum Disease Treatment
Periodontology is a branch of science concerned with maintaining the health of the hard and soft tissues surrounding teeth and dental implants, and treating them when diseases occur. These tissues include the gums (gingiva), peri-implant soft tissues, and the supporting jawbone.
Are your gums healthy enough?
Your gums are healthy if:
They have a stippled (like an orange peel) appearance and are light pink in color.
You have a clear gum line that surrounds the teeth from the beginning of the roots and follows the contours of the teeth.
You have no complaints of redness, swelling, or infection.
Bleeding does not occur with normal brushing and flossing.
No pain occurs in the gums after brushing.
Your gums appear strong and hold your teeth firmly.
Your gums are unhealthy if:
Your teeth bleed spontaneously or while brushing.
There is redness, swelling, and an irregular appearance in the gums.
You experience occasional pain in the gums, slight pain when pressure is applied, pus oozing from the gums, or sensitivity in the teeth in that area.
You have detected gum recession and exposed root surfaces.
You see black areas along the gum line caused by tartar (calculus).
You have noticed that your teeth are loose, elongated, or that gaps are opening between them.
You experience bad breath and a bad taste in your mouth due to inflammation.
You feel an itching or tingling sensation in your gums.
CAUSES:
The primary cause of gum disease is a sticky, transparent layer that covers the tooth surfaces, known as bacterial plaque. You can notice plaque when you scrape the surface of your tooth. One milligram of bacterial plaque contains approximately 500 million bacteria. However, bacterial plaque is not the only cause of gum disease.
Mouth breathing is a significant factor in the development of gum diseases.
SMOKING: Smoking, which invites many serious health issues like cancer, lung, and heart diseases, is also a significant threat to our teeth. From a gum health perspective, smoking damages the oral mucosa, causing the gums to soften and facilitating the development of gum diseases.
MEDICATION USE: Birth control pills, antidepressants, and heart medications are among the drugs that have significant effects on your oral health. Individuals using these medications should have frequent check-ups with their dentist.
HORMONAL CHANGES: Your gums become more sensitive during periods of intense hormonal changes, such as pregnancy, puberty, menopause, and menstruation. During these times, it is essential to maintain better gum hygiene.
STRESS: THE MALADY OF OUR AGE: Stress, which has become one of the untreatable ailments of our time with growing cities and more difficult lifestyles, also has a negative impact on oral and dental health. Avoiding stress, which makes the body more susceptible to infection, is a positive approach not only for your teeth but for your entire body.
GENETIC FACTORS: A predisposition to a dental problem encoded in a family’s genes can be passed down through generations. In this case, an infection can occur even if the person neglects their oral and dental care in the slightest. Therefore, if family members have a history of dental problems, it is advisable to visit the dentist more frequently.
TEETH CLENCHING – TEETH GRINDING (BRUXISM): These habits weaken the connective forces between the teeth and gums, causing damage to the periodontal tissue. One cause of gum recession is teeth clenching. This must be stopped, typically by wearing a night guard.
DIABETES: Diabetes patients are in a high-risk group for periodontal (gum) infections. They must have their routine gum check-ups performed by a gum specialist (periodontologist). They should also be more meticulous about their oral hygiene compared to others.
UNBALANCED NUTRITION: Nutrition is a crucial factor for every organ in our body, including the health of our teeth and gums. A body weakened by an unbalanced or poor diet can also lead to damaged gums.
POORLY FITTED CROWNS, BRIDGES, AND FILLINGS: Fillings, crowns, and bridges that press on the gums or have overhangs create problems for the gums.
TYPES:
GINGIVITIS: One of the most basic gum diseases, Gingivitis causes the gums to be red and swollen and to bleed during brushing. The patient usually experiences little discomfort at this stage. With proper treatment and good care, gum health can be restored. If necessary attention to oral health is not given, gingivitis can progress to periodontitis.
AGGRESSIVE PERIODONTITIS: This involves a rapid, aggressive, and destructive progression of the disease. It may not respond to conventional gum treatment and may need to be supported with antibiotic therapy.
CHRONIC PERIODONTITIS: Inflammation in the supporting tissues of the teeth leads to progressive loss of tissue and bone between the tooth and gum. It is characterized by pockets and recession in the gums. It is the most common type of periodontitis. Although it is generally seen in adults, it can occur at any age. The loss of tissue between the tooth and gum is slow, but periods of rapid progression can also occur.
PERIODONTITIS AS A MANIFESTATION OF SYSTEMIC DISEASE: This is more frequently observed in young people in conjunction with a systemic disease like diabetes.
NECROTIZING PERIODONTITIS: There is necrotizing inflammation in the bone tissue surrounding the tooth (alveolar bone), the periodontal ligament (fibers between the tooth and bone), and the gum tissue. It is more commonly observed in individuals with suppressed immune systems, poor nutrition, and those carrying the AIDS virus.
TREATMENT:
At the beginning of the gum disease treatment process, the depths of the pockets that have formed between the teeth and gums must be measured. The diagnosis is made after the measurement, taking into account the depth and quantity of the pockets. Since deep pockets accelerate the progression of gum disease, the primary goal of the treatment is to make these deep pockets as shallow as possible. It is not possible to completely clean the microorganisms that settle in deep pockets with brushing or flossing alone.
The treatment to be applied according to the level of gum disease is carried out within the following plan:
INCREASING THE FREQUENCY OF DENTAL CLEANINGS (SCALING): While general cleaning and check-ups for your oral health are typically done every six months, for individuals with or prone to periodontal disease, cleanings should be performed at shorter intervals as instructed by the dentist. The microorganisms in the plaque that settles in the pockets multiply over a three to four-month period, reaching numbers that can damage the bone. Frequent dental cleanings prevent this accumulation and protect the bone from damage.
ROOT PLANING: Commonly known as curettage, root planing is the process of scraping the attachments that have adhered to the root surface with special curettes, removing them from the surface, and exposing the healthy root surface to allow the gum to reattach.
GINGIVECTOMY AND GINGIVOPLASTY: Gum overgrowth has been observed due to medication or hereditary factors. If this gum overgrowth is not accompanied by bone loss or if there are no deep effects requiring bone regeneration, we can remove the overgrowth by excising the soft tissue wall between the tooth and gum. This procedure is called a Gingivectomy. After this procedure, a Gingivoplasty is often performed to surgically reshape the gum and restore its normal physiology.
AESTHETIC GUM PROCEDURES:
Gums are an indispensable element for a healthy smile. No matter how healthy your teeth are, if you do not have a proper gum contour, it is difficult to give those around you an impressive smile.
Unhealthy Gums: Before performing any aesthetic procedures on your gums, it is important that they are healthy. If the gums are red, swollen, and shiny due to periodontal disease, a gum treatment process is applied first.
“Gummy” Smile: In cases where the gums are too visible when smiling, a small operation can be performed to remove the excess gum tissue to achieve a more pleasant smile, whether or not any other aesthetic dentistry procedure is planned.
Gum Recession: As a result of gum recession, some teeth may appear very long. In these teeth, the root surfaces are exposed. In such cases, gum treatment should be performed first to cover these exposed areas with soft tissue grafts.
Irregular Gum Lines: The gums that frame the teeth may be too high or too low on some teeth due to reasons like gum recession, eruption problems, or tooth loss. Before any aesthetic application, the gum shapes should be brought to an ideal form.