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Soft Tissue Grafts ~ Beverly Hills

Periodontal procedures are available to stop further dental problems and gum recession, and/or to improve the esthetics of your gum line.

Exposed tooth roots are the result of gum recession. Perhaps you wish to enhance your smile by covering one or more of these roots that make your teeth appear too long. Or, maybe you’re not bothered by the appearance of these areas, but you cringe because the exposed roots are sensitive to hot or cold foods and liquids.

Your gums may have receded for a variety of reasons, including aggressive tooth brushing or periodontal disease. You may not be in control of what caused the recession, but prior to treatment your periodontist can help you identify the factors contributing to the problem. Once these contributing factors are controlled, a soft tissue graft procedure will repair the defect and help to prevent additional recession and bone loss.

Soft tissue grafts can be used to cover roots or develop gum tissue where absent due to excessive gingival recession. During this procedure, your periodontist takes gum tissue from your palate or another donor source to cover the exposed root. This can be done for one tooth or several teeth to even your gum line and reduce sensitivity.

What are the benefits of this procedure?

A soft tissue graft can reduce further recession and bone loss. In some cases, it can cover exposed roots to protect them from decay. This may reduce tooth sensitivity and improve esthetics of your smile. Whether you have a soft tissue graft to improve function or esthetics, patients often receive the benefits of both: a beautiful new smile and improved periodontal health – your keys to smiling, eating and speaking with comfort and confidence.

Source: perio.org

Periodontal Disease and Diabetes~Beverly Hills

Individuals who seek treatment for periodontal disease may be good candidates for blood tests for diabetes. There is a known correlation between the two conditions, and new research suggests that blood samples taken from the mouth may accurately detect the presence of diabetes.

For the study, researchers from New York University took blood test samples from the mouths and fingertips of individuals seeking treatment for periodontal disease. Fingertips are generally the standard location from which to draw samples.

The results showed that samples drawn from pockets of inflammation in the mouth were as accurate at diagnosing diabetes as ones taken from the fingers.

Given the high number of people with undiagnosed diabetes, the researchers said their findings could be useful in identifying those who may benefit from treatment. This may help improve the health of those suffering from the condition without knowing.

“In light of these findings, the dental visit could be a useful opportunity to conduct an initial diabetes screening – an important first step in identifying those patients who need further testing to determine their diabetes status,” said Dr. Shiela Strauss, who led the study.

Source: privatelabsmd.com

Teething ~ Beverly Hills

Teething generally starts between 3 and 9 months of age, when your infant’s baby teeth will begin to erupt or emerge into the mouth. Since teething can make your child irritable or fussy and may cause restlessness, drooling or loss of appetite, it is safe to assume that it causes the gums to be sore or painful at the spot where the tooth is trying to break through. As your child grows older, and adult teeth erupt, teething pain can be experienced again. Adults can also experience teething pain and sore gums years later, when their wisdom teeth try to emerge into the mouth. Sometimes this can be a long process, with episodes of soreness where the wisdom tooth is trying to push through the gum tissue.

Since teething is a normal process which results in injury or stress to the gums, it is generally self limiting and self healing. Teething rings for infants or applying pressure over the gums by rubbing them with a clean finger can help relieve symptoms. For older children or adults, a variety of over the counter remedies to relieve symptoms, are readily available at health food stores.

Source: drpgilbert.com

Chronic Gum Disease ~ Beverly HIlls

Why does the chronic stage of gum disease sometimes change to an acute and painful stage?

The worst case scenario is when your immune system is so over burdened by toxic stresses, including the toxins from germs, that the germs in your infected gums can over whelm your immune system.

Examples of toxic stresses are medical conditions like diabetes and AIDS, or chemical insults like synthetic additives in the processed foods most people eat every day.

You can then end up with the symptoms of a painful gum abscess. By this time the nerve in your tooth is also infected, because the germs in your infected gums can pass through tiny pores in the root, called dentinal tubules, and into the nerve. Your tooth has become infected internally and externally, surrounded by abscessed, infected tissue which has replaced the jaw bone destroyed by the gum infection. Sometimes you will see pus and blood oozing from the gum margin of the painful tooth.

Now your advanced gum disease has arrived at the final acute stage of periodontal disease. Even if prompt dental treatment, usually with antibiotics, is able to reverse the acute symptoms so that they become painless and chronic once more, the acute stage will typically make its ugly head appear again sometime after using up the prescribed antibiotics. Worse yet is the fact that this can happen to more than one tooth in your mouth.

With such severely infected teeth in your jaw bone, your body can no longer successfully heal your jaw bone. Teeth with end stage gum disease are like a foreign body in your mouth. The likelihood of saving your teeth isn’t very promising. You ultimately lose teeth, either by having them removed by a dentist, or they come out, usually when you are eating. Not a desired outcome for most people.

Source: drpgilbert.com

Healthy gums are never infected - Beverly Hills

How can I tell if my gums are healthy and I don’t have gum disease? Healthy gums are never infected. When your gums are healthy, they are firmly attached to your teeth by what is called the periodontal, ligament. Periodontal means around the tooth. The attachment is strong and tight enough to prevent any germs or their toxins from getting through, and any body fluids, like blood, from getting out. You can usually recognize when you have a healthy gum attachment because your gums will be pink, firm, and never bleed or hurt with routine brushing, flossing, or when chewing food.

Source: drpgilbert.com

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