When harmful bacteria build up around the gums, they can damage the tissues that support your teeth and hold them in place.
This causes an inflammatory condition known as gum disease, which can lead to discomfort, bleeding, bad breath, and ultimately, tooth loss and systemic health problems. Our team at BeDental is proud to provide safe and effective gum disease treatment in North Bellmore and Manhasset, NY, to protect your smile and your whole-body health.
Our team offers advanced gum disease treatment to help stop infection and protect your oral health.
We provide care for every stage of periodontal disease, from early gingivitis treatment to managing periodontitis with personalized plans tailored to your unique needs. We also offer guidance on prevention and help you plan financing so your gum disease treatment remains manageable and stress-free.
If you’ve been diagnosed with gum disease, various treatment options are available, depending on the specifics of your situation and the severity of the problem. We always start with the least invasive options, which are non-surgical. However, in more serious cases, surgery may be necessary.
The first line of defense against gum disease is a unique type of cleaning called “scaling and root planing.” In this procedure, an ultrasonic cleaning device is used to remove plaque and tartar from your teeth that regular cleaning devices can’t reach, including under the gum line, on the tooth, and around the root. Then, the rough surface of the tooth and the root are smoothed out (planed). This provides a healthy, clean surface that facilitates the gum tissue’s reattachment to the tooth.
If you address your gum disease before it becomes severe, scaling and root planing may be the only treatment you need. However, as with any dental procedure, after-care is vital. To maintain good dental health and prevent future instances of gum disease, it is essential to brush and floss daily, eat a balanced diet, refrain from using tobacco, and schedule regular dental check-ups. Even after a successful scaling and root planing, if you don’t attend to your teeth properly, it’s quite likely that you’ll develop gum disease again.
In a healthy mouth, the teeth are firmly surrounded by gum tissue and securely supported by the bones of the jaw. Periodontal disease damages these tissues and bones, leaving open spaces around the teeth known as pockets. The larger these pockets are, the easier it is for bacteria to accumulate inside them, leading to increasing damage over time. Eventually, the supportive structure degrades to the point that the tooth either falls out or needs to be removed.
During pocket reduction procedures (also known as “flap surgery”), we fold back the gum tissue and remove the bacteria hiding underneath, as well as the hardened plaque and tartar that have collected.
We may also remove any tissue that is too damaged to survive. We then sew the healthy tissue back into its original position. Now that the tooth and root are free of bacteria, plaque, and tartar, and the pockets have been reduced, the gums can reattach to the teeth.
When the bone and tissue supporting the teeth have been lost due to severe gum disease, we can restore these areas with a regeneration procedure. During this process, we begin by folding back the gum tissue and removing the bacteria, plaque, and tartar.
Depending on your situation, we may then perform a bone graft to stimulate new bone growth, or we may apply a special type of protein that stimulates tissue growth to repair the areas destroyed by the disease.
A frequent symptom of gum disease is gum recession (also called gingival recession). As the gums recede, more of the roots are revealed.
This can make teeth appear longer and also create sensitivity to hot or cold liquids and foods. It also exposes the tooth to increased damage from gum disease, as bacteria, plaque, and tartar attack the surface of the tooth and the root. During a soft-tissue graft, tissue from the top of your mouth or another source is sewn to the gum area, covering the roots and restoring the gum line to its original, healthy location. This procedure can also be performed for cosmetic reasons.
The Chao Pinhole® Surgical Technique (PST®), invented and patented by John Chao, DDS, is a scalpel-free, suture-free procedure for treating gum recession. This procedure is performed by making a small hole in the gum tissue using a needle.
Using specially designed instruments, the gum tissue is loosened and guided over the receded part of the tooth. Since there is no incision or suturing, patients can expect minimal post-operative symptoms (pain, swelling, and bleeding). Most patients are also pleasantly surprised by the instant cosmetic improvement.
