Periodontal Maintenance
When you’ve had periodontal disease, you need ongoing dental health care to maintain your teeth. Even after treatment for periodontal disease, you must get more frequent cleanings to ensure the disease doesn’t worsen; this is a process called periodontal maintenance.
At Torrey Dental, the trained dental professionals offer periodontal maintenance in a comfortable setting. You’ll receive the care you need from friendly individuals who care about your individual dental health. Find out more about periodontal maintenance or book a visit today!
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What Is Periodontal Disease?
Periodontal disease is a dental issue usually caused by a lack of oral hygiene, however, even the best of home dental hygiene may not prevent it if you are subject to other factors. When the gums and bone that support your teeth get inflamed or infected, this causes gingivitis. During this first stage of problems, the gums swell and get red.
At this stage, it’s possible to reverse the damage through extra attention to your good oral health habits. However, if you don’t do this, the problem can worsen to periodontitis, also known as late-stage periodontal disease. This is a disease that mostly impacts adults.
Unfortunately, periodontal disease is relatively common, and it can cause major dental problems. When the teeth reach this stage, you’ll lose gum strength and even bone density. If you don’t receive treatment, you could lose your teeth.
What Is Periodontal Maintenance?
Once gum disease has progressed to its advanced stages—periodontitis—you can’t easily reverse the impact on your gums. However, you can maintain the gums where they are and keep things from worsening. This process is called periodontal maintenance.
Periodontal maintenance is slightly different from periodontal treatment. With periodontal treatment, the deep pockets of infection that form under the gum line are addressed and treated. This is a more involved process that requires anesthesia.
After treatment, patients need periodontal maintenance to keep periodontitis from progressing. While it’s not possible to reverse the damage at this point, you can still maintain better dental health.
How Periodontal Maintenance Works
Periodontal maintenance is a more in-depth type of dental cleaning. While most people only need to see the dentist around two to three times per year and receive basic cleanings, people who have periodontitis need more frequent care.
Most people need to get a cleaning every three to four months. During a periodontal maintenance appointment, hygienists will clean below the gumline thoroughly to keep the infection from returning.
While anesthesia usually isn’t required, sedation dentistry options can keep you more comfortable during the treatment.
How To Prevent Periodontal Disease
The best way to deter periodontal disease is to practice basic oral hygiene habits. Here are some simple things you can do to keep your gums and teeth in good health:
- See the dentist regularly.
- Follow the instructions of your dentist.
- Brush at least twice a day.
- Floss thoroughly once a day.
For more questions and advice on how to prevent periodontal disease, contact the team at Torrey Dental.
Get Compassionate Maintenance for Periodontal Disease
While periodontal maintenance isn’t always pleasant, it is necessary to keep your gums and teeth from getting worse. It’s vital that you go to the dentist around 4 times per year to maintain your dental health and deter the impacts of periodontal disease.
When you receive periodontal maintenance services at Torrey Dental, we care about your comfort and experience. As a patient-focused office, we can provide sedation dentistry and other options to ensure the treatments are as comfortable and fast as possible.
Give our team a call to book your appointment!
