Periodontal Therapy

What is Periodontal Therapy?

Plaque and bacteria can wreak havoc and if not removed, they can cause severe damage such as bone or tooth loss, or even worse. There’s a good chance that you have periodontal disease if you notice several of the following:

• Loose or unstable teeth
• Halitosis (bad breath)
• Inflamed, tender or swollen gums
• Receding gum line
• Bleeding gums
• Gaps between teeth
• Pain while chewing

Because plaque hardens into calculus, or tartar, it becomes difficult to remove, thus creating gaps between your gum line and teeth. 

As gums recede, to avoid bone and tooth loss, periodontal therapy must be used to obliterate the rock-hard buildup and revitalize the inflamed and infected gums.

Deep cleaning, root planing and scaling (periodontal therapy) can help. Here’s how:

• This procedure can help get your teeth and gums back to their former glory. Westerville Dental Associates has had excellent results bringing patients back from the brink of losing bone, teeth and ultimately, their oral health.
• The process begins with ‘scaling’, or the removal of plaque and tartar that has built up over the years. Once the scaling is complete, then each tooth gets a thorough cleaning to ensure that all pockets are cleaned, sterilized and prepared for future growth.
• Next, tooth roots are smoothed out to coax their reattachment to the teeth which will help eliminate future inflammation and bleeding by making room for roots to thrive.
• The process and followup will require multiple sessions, and anesthesia will be used to minimize any sensitivity or pain. 
• Periodontal therapy is different from your regular recare cleaning! It is a slightly longer appointment so your hygienist has adequate time to correctly treat the active infection both below and above the visible gum line.