At Dental Sense Clinic, we treat complex periodontal cases with a mixture of non-surgical and surgical treatments, tailored to each individual patient’s needs.
Apart from the gum disease treatment, we also perform periodontal plastic microsurgery (gum contouring). If your gums rest too low or too high on your teeth and you are unhappy with your smile, we can adjust your gum line so that it is even and you are left with a smile you can be proud of!
Periodontal examination at Dental Sense
We incorporate a thorough gum and periodontal evaluation into each visit. This includes:
- Pocket depth measurement of the space between your gums and teeth; smaller is better
- Evaluation of bone loss based on either X-Ray or CBCT images
- Determination of tooth mobility
- Measurement of gum recession (exposure of tooth necks)
Gum disease - symptoms
Gum disease (periodontal disease or periodontitis) is an infection of the tissues supporting and surrounding the teeth. It is mainly caused by the accumulation of bacteria from the dental plaque that inflames and damages the gums. Untreated, the inflammation migrates from the teeth to the jaw-bone, causing bone reduction and eventually tooth loss.
Depending on the stage of the disease, the following symptoms may occur:
- Occasional redness or bleeding of gums while brushing teeth
- Occasional gum swellings
- Sensitivity at the gum line
- Bad breath or persistent bad taste in the mouth
- Recession of gums resulting in longer teeth and exposed tooth necks
- Loose, shaky, drifting teeth
Regular dental check-ups and examinations are important because it is possible to have gum infections without the usual signs and symptoms. They may advance painlessly, exhibiting few evident signs even in the late phase of the disease. This explains the increased risk of losing one’s teeth.
Gum disease treatment
Periodontal disease treatment aims to eliminate the causes of the disease and stop its evolution. The number and types of treatment will vary, depending on the extent of the gum disease. Treatment is broadly divided into non-surgical treatment and surgical treatment. These may include:
- Professional teeth cleaning
- Scaling and root planing (deep cleaning) - a non-surgical procedure which removes plaque and calculus (tartar) from under your gum line and along exposed roots
- Dental curettage – cleaning of the gum pocket. Both the open and closed types of curettage are very important steps in periodontal treatment and reducing recessing gums
- Flap surgery
- Guided bone or tissue regeneration
- Splinting of loose teeth
Cosmetic gum contouring at Dental Sense
A beautiful and harmonious smile is not only about your teeth position, shape and colour. The position of your gum line has also a huge impact on the aesthetics of your smile. Each of the problems below can be solved by periodontal plastic microsurgery, known as gum re-sculpting or contouring:
Gum contouring is performed for both medical and aesthetic reasons. Injuries, tooth misalignments, tooth grinding or the wrong tooth brushing technique can lead to a non-inflammatory gum recession. These recessions then lead to unpleasantly exposed tooth necks. Hypersensitivity and root caries are possible consequences.
