Periodontal Therapy

Oral health is not only about healthy teeth. Healthy periodontium is a crucial factor in overall oral health. Periodontal diseases are sneaky; they progress with minor symptoms, such as bleeding and swollen gums. If left untreated, they may progress to a more severe form, ending with tooth loss.

Periodontal diseases are widespread; according to some NHS reports, over half of the UK population suffers from an irreversible form of periodontal disease.

Periodontal therapy is a group of treatment solutions addressing all the problems related to the tissue supporting structures, also known as the periodontium.

At Dulwich Dental Office, our experts provide comprehensive care for gum and periodontal disease treatment to help you maintain your oral wellbeing.

We provide a variety of surgical and non-surgical periodontal treatment solutions. After careful examination, a customised treatment plan is crafted using the most recent diagnostic tools and innovative treatment technologies.

How Do Periodontal Diseases Develop

Periodontal tissues include the gums, alveolar bone, and the periodontal ligament, attaching the tooth to the bone.

The early stage of periodontal disease starts as gum inflammation. During brushing, you may notice gum swelling, discomfort, and bleeding. Early intervention at this stage is important to prevent tissue loss.

If gum inflammation goes untreated, the inflammation progresses to a more severe but reversible form. The symptoms are exacerbated where the bleeding may be spontaneous, and there may be gum swelling and pocket formation.

The pocket indicates bone resorption and the migration of periodontal ligament attachment more apically.

The more advanced form of periodontal disease includes severe bone resorption, gum recession, tooth sensitivity, and tooth looseness.

Risk Factors for Developing Periodontal Diseases

Some factors may increase your chances of developing periodontal diseases, such as:

1. Dental plaque

Dental plaque is the main cause of periodontal diseases. It is a sticky layer that allows bacteria to attach to the smooth surface of the tooth. Bacterial activity within the plaque layer releases acids and byproducts that lead to tooth decay and gum inflammation.

Plaque can be easily removed during daily brushing and flossing. However, if the plaque layer is left uncleaned for 24 hours, it will be difficult to remove using regular brushing and flossing and will require a professional teeth cleaning session.

2. Smoking, vaping, and alcohol

Some habits may be contributing to bad periodontal health. To enjoy healthy gums, these habits must be reduced or stopped. This includes smoking, vaping, and drinking alcohol.

Smoking was found to be a high-risk factor for the initiation and severity of periodontal diseases and can even reduce the success rate of periodontal therapy.

Chronic alcohol consumption can alter the bacterial balance in the oral cavity, leading to more severe periodontal diseases.

3. Uncontrolled diabetes

There is a strong link between hyperglycemia and the severity of periodontal diseases. The increased sugar level in blood may lead to sugar accumulation in the periodontal tissues, leading to increased incidence of developing infections, delayed healing, and tissue deterioration through bone loss and gum recession. It is essential to maintain your blood sugar level within the normal range to avoid periodontal diseases.

4. Certain medications

Some medications may affect your periodontal health, such as the intake of epilepsy drugs or calcium channel blockers that may cause gingival enlargement, and antidepressants may cause a dry mouth, leading to easier attachment of the bacteria over the tooth surface.

What is Periodontal Therapy?

Periodontal therapy is a group of services aiming to stop the progression of periodontal disease and reverse the damage that has occurred. Stopping the progression of periodontal disease occurs by removing the cause, which is bacteria. Bacteria are attached to the tooth surface through the sticky plaque layer. To enhance oral health, periodontal therapy provides solutions to restore the periodontal tissue components, including the gums, bone, and periodontal ligament attachment.

You May Need Periodontal Therapy if You Experience

• Bleeding gums
• Swollen gums
• Gum recession
• Teeth sensitivity
• Tooth looseness
• Bad breath
• Pocket formation

Dulwich Dental Office, Periodontal Therapy Solutions

Dulwich Dental Office is a world-class dental centre in London offering top-rated periodontal therapy solutions. We include recent trends and technologies in the hands of our expert periodontists. No matter how advanced the damage is, our periodontists have successfully managed over 10000 periodontal therapies that saved countless teeth from extraction. Periodontal therapy at the Dulwich Dental Office takes place in three main stages: control, therapy, and maintenance.

Control stage: non-surgical periodontal therapy

This stage aims to remove the cause of periodontal disease and prevent further damage. This occurs mainly by removing the bacterial colonisation attached to the tooth surface through the plaque and calculus layers. Suppose plaque was accumulated due to improper oral hygiene, defective restoration, or dental caries; these must be addressed first to avoid reattachment of bacteria over the tooth surface following professional teeth cleaning.

The control stage takes place by performing a scaling and root planning session.

Scaling is a procedure for removing plaque and tartar below the gum line to clean the full depth of the pocket. It differs from the regular hygiene cleaning in that during a hygiene session, the plaque and tartar above the gum line is removed, while during scaling, the cleaning goes deeper below the gum line.

Root planning is to remove the defective cementum layer covering the root and smoothening the root surface to enhance the reattachment of gum tissues.

Scaling and root planning are performed using specific hand instruments called dental curettes and may be combined with ultrasonic instruments.

It is essential to follow proper oral hygiene measures after a scaling and root planning session to promote healing. A recall visit after 3 to 6 months is necessary to monitor the healing progress. By that time, most of the small pockets will have healed, while larger ones may require surgical intervention after achieving good oral conditions.

Surgical Periodontal Therapy Solutions

The surgical periodontal therapy solutions aim to restore the damage that occurred to the periodontal tissues. These solutions include:

• Bone graft

  When periodontal diseases are left untreated for a long time, this leads to bone resorption. The alveolar bone resorption will subsequently lead to gum recession, teeth sensitivity due to exposure of the root surface, and teeth looseness. Bone graft is a corrective periodontal surgery, where bone graft, either natural or synthetic, is placed in the area of lost bone to promote the bone cells to create new bone.

• Gum graft

  Gum is the frame for a beautiful smile. That pink tissue smoothly curving around the neck of the teeth gives a great addition to the smile. When gum tissue is lost due to periodontal diseases, this leads to bad aesthetics as the tooth appears longer. Gum graft surgery involves the stitching of a gum graft collected from a secondary site in the mouth in the area of the gum defect to compensate for the lost gum tissue and to provide a better aesthetic smile.

• Gingival flap surgery

  Gingival flap surgery, also known as pocket reduction surgery, is a procedure in which the tooth root is exposed in areas of deep pockets. This surgery lifts the gum attachment to a higher level, decreasing the pocket depth to promote healing and provide a healthier gum attachment.

• Gum contouring

  Periodontal disease may lead to gum hyperplasia, where there is enlargement of the gum tissue around the tooth that leads to bad aesthetics as a larger area of the tooth is covered. The procedure involves the removal of excess gum tissue and contouring the gums to a healthier and aesthetic appearance.

Maintenance stage

Periodontal diseases can easily return without controlling plaque accumulation. This is why, following your periodontal therapy, you are strongly encouraged to maintain oral hygiene measures at home and schedule regular hygiene visits to maintain your periodontal health.

How to maintain your periodontal health

• Setting an oral hygiene regime

  Our expert periodontists will give you the required oral hygiene care instructions and the most suitable oral hygiene tools that can be beneficial for you. The oral hygiene regime must include:

• Brushing:

  Brushing is generally recommended at least twice daily. Depending on your periodontal health, our experts may increase this to three times daily to control plaque accumulation. The brushing technique is an important factor in your periodontal health. It is advised to brush your teeth vertically from the gum line to the edge, avoiding excessive pressure, horizontal brushing, and back-and-forth motions to prevent gum injury. To ensure clean teeth, it is suggested to brush for two minutes. Recently, electric toothbrushes have been introduced for easier teeth cleaning.

• Flossing:

  Flossing includes the use of a thin thread to clean in between your teeth to remove the wedged food particles. Our dental experts will advise regarding the correct flossing technique. Recent innovations exist for cleaning in between the teeth if the flossing seems difficult for you, such as self-threaded floss and interproximal brushes.

• Mouthwashes

  Mouthwashes are not an essential part of the daily oral hygiene regime; in general, they are used as a breath freshener after certain foods, such as garlic and onion. However, if you have a periodontal disease or have been through periodontal surgery, our experts may recommend specific types of mouthwashes to promote healing.

• Behavioral changes

  It is essential to reduce or quit smoking, vaping, and alcohol consumption, especially during recovery following periodontal therapy, to promote tissue healing. Also, if you are a diabetic patient, make sure to maintain your blood sugar level within the normal range to avoid delayed healing or further tissue deterioration.

• Regular hygiene visits

  Maintaining regular hygiene visits for professional teeth cleaning is an essential part of your oral hygiene regime to maintain your oral health. Even when you brush and floss your teeth daily, plaque may accumulate in inaccessible areas. This is why a professional teeth cleaning session is recommended twice per year, or as recommended by our experts, to maintain your oral health.