Having your teeth professionally cleaned routinely will act as a preventive shield against the risk of gum disease.
If you haven’t been to see the hygienist in a little while, read on to find out about how deep cleaning can benefit you and why protecting your teeth against gum disease is beneficial for your overall health and wellbeing.
Deep cleaning – what to expect
The deep cleaning of teeth involves 2 separate processes.
Firstly, your periodontist will perform the scaling part of the process, removing plaque and tartar from underneath the gumline.
Following this, we perform something called root planing. Once a special instrument has been used to clean and smoothen out the root of each tooth, the gums can reattach themselves to the tooth. This helps to minimise the size of the pocket, where bacteria has previously been able to settle and cause the progression of gum disease. This is carried out under local anaesthetic.
We may prescribe some antibiotics and special mouthwash, which will help to stabilise and improve your condition at home.
We recommend deep cleaning in cases where a pocket is more than 5 millimetres deep, exposing the bone. In more severe cases, we may need to perform periodontal surgery, such as regeneration. This involves cleaning above the gum line and using a regenerative material such as graft tissue. This is applied to help your body trigger its own regeneration system. This will build back the bone that has deteriorated as a result of gum disease.
Do I need a deep clean if my gums are bleeding?
If it’s been a little while since you last flossed your teeth, or you’re new to flossing altogether, you may experience some bleeding during the first week that you begin flossing. However, if your gums continue to bleed after 1-2 weeks, you might be suffering from gum disease, so you should make an appointment with your hygienist at one80 Dental as soon as you can.
Using state-of-the-art technology, we can identify how evolved your gum disease has become and begin to reverse the issue of bleeding gums. It could be as simple as recommending that you use a gum disease-fighting toothpaste and mouthwash and have a scale and polish performed to remove plaque and tartar along your gum line.
Are receding gums linked to gum disease?
Gum recession is characterised by the progression whereby the area of gum that covers teeth begins to pull away, exposing the areas of your tooth not covered by enamel.
This can become problematic for your teeth, as the dentin is not as robust as enamel. This leaves it highly vulnerable to acid attacks, which can cause cavities much more readily than in teeth which are protected by tooth enamel.
Another complication of gum recession is that bacteria can creep into the gap that’s left as a result of gums pulling back from your teeth. Once bacteria reach into the lower depths under your gum line, deep cleaning is needed to remove it so that it doesn’t begin to destroy your jawbone. Receding gums treatment therefore encompasses deep cleaning treatment.
Why is it essential to address the symptoms of gum disease?
Receiving treatment for receding gums and other symptoms of gum disease will prevent a downward trajectory towards the risk of tooth loss and more severe health problems.
Gum disease accounts for most instances of tooth loss in adults, but it’s completely preventable with the right routine. Nurturing good oral hygiene habits is something we can help patients to develop. This might be aiding you with improving your technique when you brush and floss your teeth, having a conversation about swapping out high acid and high sugar foods out of your diet and quitting habits like smoking, which is directly linked to gum disease.
Problems like bleeding gums and receding gums should be addressed early, as other health problems can come about if they are left to develop. Studies examining the connection between gum disease and general health began in the 1980s. Since then, research has grown exponentially. There is now overwhelming evidence linking gum disease to certain serious medical conditions, including heart disease.
The walls of the arteries can become blocked by plaque, which can enter the bloodstream when it reaches the area under your gum line. Should the arteries become too constricted, this can lead to heart disease and heart attacks.
In recent years, gum disease has also been linked to cognitive diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s; scientists believe the link between the two is to do with the body’s inflammatory response.
Why choose one80 Dental for your deep cleaning and receding gums treatment?
The technology we use to diagnose and perform treatment to remove the plaque and tartar that’s compromising your oral health is advanced and minimally-invasive.
The Perioflow system allows for the systematic cleaning of periodontal pockets, implant surfaces and interdental spaces. This technology is particularly successful in supporting periodontal therapy and non-surgical treatment of peri-implantitis (when gum disease affects dental implants) and periodontitis. The Periflow is equipped with a special nozzle that is capable of flexing and reaching awkward spaces under the gum line without causing discomfort to the patient.
Receding gums treatment in Sheffield
If you’ve noticed some gum recession in the mirror when you’ve been brushing at home, you should make an appointment with us so we can check this over. When you come to see us, we will closely monitor the rate at which your gums are receding. If you’ve been using a manual hard-bristled toothbrush, we recommend swapping this out for an electric one. Stopping smoking will also halt the speed at which your gums are receding.
If we find your gums have further receded at your next appointment, despite putting these changes in place, we will take a look at the next steps to address your receding gums.
Contact us for a routine hygienist check-up
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