Perils of Periodontitis

Yes, the title is quite a mouthful (no pun intended). That's because periodontitis is neither a pleasant term to hear or to read about. It's even more unpleasant to experience this serious gum infection. 

I speak from first hand experience, which is the reason for this post.

Thanks for the well wishes in your comments after I posted last week about my then upcoming dental procedure. It's over with a couple of follow up visits starting this week. (No surgery details or photos are in this post.) All illustrations are from online sources.

If left untreated, periodontitis is a serious gum infection that can lead to tooth loss and serious health issues. It damages soft tissue and can destroy bone that supports the teeth which then leads to tooth loss.

Gingivitis is a gum disease that's a milder stage of periodontitis. Gingivitis often results in reddened or swollen gums and bleeding when brushing or eating. 

Both infections are the body’s response to bacteria that accumulates on teeth. In the long term, this bacteria forms plaque, which hardens to tartar (or calculus). When tartar build-ups below the gum line, teeth are harder to clean, leading to spaces around the teeth under the gum line. 

It's these spaces, known as pocketing, that have always been a problem for myself. In my case, an underlying cause may be heredity as not only did my late mother have dental issues, but so does my brother.

If your dental visits are like mine, they include periodontal charting, a process that measures the distance between the gums and where they attach to the teeth. The higher the number, the higher the chance of infection and if pockets fill with bacteria, this can lead to periodontitis

That's what happened with myself. Unfortunately, periodontal disease is mostly seen in adults.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), almost half of U.S. adults have some degree of gum disease and it increases with age. By age 65, 1 in 4 adults have serious gum disease. Estimates from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services are that 1 in 7 adults between 35 and 44 years old have some form of gum disease from gingivitis to severe periodontitis. 

Gum disease is has been linked to other conditions including heart disease and stroke in older adults. Researchers have also linked periodontal disease with an increased buildup of beta-amyloid in the brain, which is the neurological hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. 

Factors that increase the risk for periodontal disease include smoking, diabetes, poor oral hygiene, stress, heredity, crooked teeth, and underlying immuno-deficiencies.

Bacteria in the gums can enter the blood supply and move to other parts of the body like the heart and possibly cause inflammation and damage in the cardiovascular system. That said, not everyone with heart disease has had gum disease, and not everyone with gum disease has a diagnosis of heart disease.

The severity of periodontitis disease determines its treatment with the goal being to bring the infection under control and prevent further damage. Options include:

Medications (antibiotics or antimicrobial) to reduce the size of gum pockets in the form of mouthrinse, gel, pills, or particles that a dentist places directly in the infected area.

Scaling and root planning for less severe cases. This deep-cleaning method removes bacteria from around the gum line and tooth root.

Surgery when inflammation persists in sites inaccessible to brushing and flossing. Flap surgery cleans deposits under the gums. Gum or bone graft surgery grafts tissue or bone from another part of the mouth onto the damaged part of the gum.

My procedure was flap surgery done under local anesthesia to numb the gums which are then lifted up and roots of the teeth cleaned. Then, the gums were stitched back into place. I am so grateful not to have seen or felt anything during the procedure, novocaine is a great thing.

My periodontist took time to detail the procedure and the follow-up care needed afterwards. Start to finish, the process took about 1-1/2 hours and I went home afterwards. I received a pain medication prescription, but over the counter pain relievers worked as did an ice pack. Grenville also was most attentive. We did have ice cream, which was one of the soft foods recommended after surgery. Not that we needed any excuse for a treat!

Sutures come out this week. Complete healing will take 2-3 full weeks with procedures to be followed, last checkup in several weeks. Hopefully, there will not be a repeat procedure needed anytime. 

This was a very longish post on a rather different topic compared to what's going on worldwide. For myself, blog posts tend to be more personal with topics selected from personal experience and some may also have a widened scope. In doing online research for this post, it was eye-opening to read the statistics of those also affected and possible health issues if left untreated.

Your turn — Anyone else faced a similar situation in the past (or now)? 

If so, hopefully your outcome was (or will be) a good one as well.