Your gums play a crucial role in the health of your mouth. The tissue sits snugly against your teeth, essentially creating a protective barrier, or seal, that keeps bacteria from reaching the tooth roots. Gum disease, however, causes this barrier to break down. When bacteria irritate your gums, they become inflamed. Swollen gums eventually pull away from your teeth, creating pockets. Bacteria, food particles, and other debris are given free access below the gum line, and they begin to collect there. At this point, no amount of at home oral health care can restore the health of your mouth. Professional treatment is required. Without treatment, the pockets grow deeper, and the structures that support your teeth (your jawbone and periodontal ligaments) weaken. Eventually, gum disease can result in tooth loss. At Edelweiss Dental Implant Center, we can help to reduce your periodontal pockets and restore the health of your mouth with a gingivectomy. Laser Dentistry is a minimally invasive option when you’re facing gum surgery, cavity treatment, or other oral issues.
What is a Gingivectomy?
Scaling and root planing are common procedures used for treating gum disease. With this treatment, specialized tools are used to remove plaque, tartar, and bacterial buildup from around your gum line (scaling) and along the roots of the teeth (root planing). In removing this buildup, your gums can reattach to the teeth and begin the healing process. However, if your periodontal pockets are too deep, no amount of scaling and root planing will effectively clean your teeth. Any amount of bacteria left behind will only cause gum disease to return.
A gingivectomy is a procedure that is done to reduce the depth of your periodontal pockets, thus making procedures like scaling and root planing possible. It is usually done before any damage being done to the jawbone. Using a laser, we remove infected tissue and then reshape it to provide better aesthetics. With buildup eliminated, your mouth can begin to heal.
How is a Gingivectomy Performed?
If a gingivectomy is needed, it is usually done following scaling and root planing. Before we begin, we administer a local anesthetic, which will help to manage any pain or discomfort you may experience. Using a laser, we remove infected gum tissue. The laser limits the amount of bleeding you may experience. It will also help to make your healing process easier by reducing the amount of pain and swelling you may experience. What’s more is that the laser will help to stimulate new tissue growth, aiding in speeding up your recovery period. After your procedure, we check to make sure that your periodontal pockets are shallow enough so that you can maintain your teeth at home.
While a gingivectomy can help to restore the health of your mouth, it is not a permanent solution. Without proper care, gum disease can reoccur. Because of this, it is essential that you take steps to maintain the health of your mouth. You should brush your teeth at least twice a day, floss daily, and attend regular dental cleanings and exams. It is also important to keep an eye on your mouth. Even though a gingivectomy is designed to be done before the jawbone sustains any damage, it is possible that your jaw may have been affected. If your oral health continues to suffer despite proper care, other treatment options may need to be explored. Periodontal maintenance is also a teeth cleaning, however, it is performed on patients who have gum disease. Bleeding gums could be an indicator of periodontal gum disease or related issues.
Gum disease needs to be treated. A gingivectomy can help to give you back the health of your mouth by allowing us to thoroughly clean out deep periodontal pockets. For more information, or to find out if a gingivectomy is right for you, call Edelweiss Dental Implant Center today at (972) 315-2345.