The Periodontitis is usually called gum disease, and it is predominant. One way to know if you have Periodontitis is to check if your deeper periodontal structures and gums are swollen.

When the gums become inflamed, it is common to see them becoming red, and blessing as you brush. Once this occurs, the body is reacting to specific kind of bacteria that have amassed greatly on the teeth.

The bacteria are usually part of the defense team of the body, in a bid to prevent other microorganisms from gaining access to the mouth. Though they are good, the bacteria can still cause havoc if they are a lot.

If you ignore the inflammation and refuse to treat it, it could spread to other parts of the mouth like the roots and gums, and worsen to the damage of supporting bone and periodontal ligament.

This then results in the loosening of the teeth, and sometimes, the loss of a tooth or teeth. If unchecked, Periodontitis is capable of making every tooth in the mouth loosen.

What is Periodontitis?

When the gums and the supporting structures become inflamed, it is most likely a case of Periodontitis. This is a very common human ailment that plagues a lot of persons.

This gum condition is linked to a specific kind of bacteria, which is the periodontal bacteria, and they trigger inflammation of the gum.

Normally, the mouth has periodontal bacteria and they are very useful, but they can become dangerous when they increase a lot because of the favorable condition of the mouth.

The bacteria breed a lot when oral hygiene reduces drastically, meaning that the person brushes once or hardly flosses. If the person rarely flosses, the food debris remains lodged in those hard to reach places, and lead to plaque.

Those toxic bacteria, as well as the Periodontal bacteria, can easily live and multiply in such conditions, thereby churning out toxic products regularly, which could go on to induce the defensive inflammatory response of the body.

As the disease continues to grow, the inflammation becomes more chronic, leading to the jawbone damaging, and the teeth falling out.

To some, this usually takes a lot of years before one can notice it well. If you detect it and have it treated, the spread of Periodontitis can reduce.

The active type of this disease is seen a lot in young adults, and that’s why it is common to see a lot of them losing their teeth.

How can I recognise periodontitis?

This question has been asked over and over again. How possible is to see if Periodontitis has occurred, and is spreading?

A clear symptom of Periodontitis is that the gums become inflamed. Once you notice that your gums are suffering from inflammation, there is a chance that it may be gingivitis.

If gingivitis is treated on time, it doesn’t worsen to full-blown Periodontitis that could lead to your teeth falling out.

In some persons, the inflammation may not be noticed, which leaves the bleeding of the gums as another sign. When you brush your teeth, and you notice that your gum bleeds, you may be suffering from Periodontitis or gingivitis.

Stare at your gums, how do they look like? If they are swollen and red, you should consider going to see your dentist. Sometimes, you may notice that on your teeth, there are discolored layers of plaque.

If not treated, the gingivitis may lead to full-blown Periodontitis and no one wants that.

If gingivitis has worsened to Periodontitis, you may notice the following:

Increased Bleeding From Your Gums

Though gingivitis may have bleeding of gums as a sign, it is important to know that if the bleeding is increased, it could be Periodontitis and no longer gingivitis. When you eat or brush, and notice this, you should consider going to see a dentist.

Bad Breath

Have you noticed that you have bad breath or halitosis? Bad breath can be caused by a lot of things, even by the drugs we take. Periodontitis should be suspected too if you have bad breath.

Alterations In The Teeth’s Position In The Jaws

If you notice that the position of the teeth in the jaws have changed, you should consider going to see a dentist. This most likely means that the teeth are loosening, and can fall out at any time.

Gum Recession

Look at your gum. Does it seem like the gum is receding? Does it seem like the length of the teeth seem to be increasing? If you notice any of this, you may have Periodontitis.

Pain

This doesn’t happen in every case of Periodontitis. If you notice that when you eat, brush or drink, your gums start to the pain you, then it may be Periodontitis.

For those who smoke, the bleeding from the gums may not be seen a lot. Why is this so? The nicotine in their cigarettes has affected the blood vessels in the gum, which means that the disease may be present, but it may be masked until the teeth start loosening.

Usually, the Periodontitis may not be noticed until the person has gotten to forty or even fifty years. During that time, a lot of damage would have been done to the teeth.

This is why undergoing regular visits to the dentist is important because the dentist is capable of detecting the symptoms of the disease before it worsens. The dentist makes use of Periodontal Screening Index, a special assessment.

What are the causes of periodontitis?

A mouth that undergoes good oral hygiene is known to be colonized by over seven hundred bacteria’s species. Out of that number, a lot of them are not harmful and can live perfectly with the host without causing damage.

Once the teeth are not cleaned well, the bacteria start to build up rapidly close to the gums, which lead to plaque formation. Once the plaque is formed, the condition for those harmful bacteria to survive becomes available. This makes the body’s defense system to be easily compromised.

In every case of Periodontitis, it was caused by bacteria building up to form dental plaque.

If the bacterial plaque is not wiped off by maintaining oral hygiene, there will be a continuous deposit of minerals over the years, and before one can say, ‘Jack Robinson’, tartar formation will occur.

Tartar being present motivates the bacterial play to move towards the roots of the teeth. Once the inflammation continues to grow deeper, that link that holds the root to the gum is damaged. Before you know it, a periodontal pocket or gap is created between them.

A gap is a great place for toxic bacteria to settle on, and multiply rapidly, thereby making sure the disease worsens.

In the gap, the toxic bacteria start to churn out toxins as the by-product of their metabolism, which then leads to the defence mechanism of the body being triggered.

The rate at which Periodontitis increases is based on some factors like the kind of bacteria that are present, the number of bacteria there, how sturdy the defence mechanism of the person is. It is also determined by some risk factors.

Let’s use an example. If the bacteria are very aggressive, and it is noticed that the person’s immune system is weak, then the disease will most likely worsen quickly

Some of the risk factors that could increase one’s chances of getting Periodontitis are diabetes and smoking. They can increase the disease’s process.

There are some drugs that have been linked to making people at risk of developing gingivitis and full-blown Periodontitis. Drugs like vasodilating or antihypertensive agents, as well as immunotherapy,  can lead to this.

One thing that you should note is that if bacterial plaque is not accumulated, Periodontitis will not happen.

What can I do to prevent periodontal disease?

Periodontitis can be prevented, and it is quite easy to do just that. One can prevent the formation of Periodontitis when he or she adopts good oral hygiene practices, as well as going for regular visits to the dentist

What makes up a good oral hygiene practice shouldn’t be so hard, and they are:

Using a good toothbrush that is of good condition and size to brush at least two times in a day. While brushing, take your time and don’t be in a hurry. Try to clean off the sides and the chewing surfaces of the teeth. Don’t forget to combine this with a fluoride toothpaste

Make use of dental floss to clean those parts that the bristles of the toothbrush won’t be able to get to. It won’t be a bad idea to use an interdental brush too. What determines whether you use an interdental brush or dental floss is based on the size of the space that you want to reach daily. Try to get this done at least once every day.

For those parts that the teeth are very close together, you can use the dental floss. If it is noticed that the gaps are larger, you should consider opting for interdental brushes.

It is important that you take your time while cleaning crowded teeth, crooked teeth, dentures and crowns to prevent plaque from growing in those places because the toothbrush can’t reach.

Antiseptic mouthwashes can also be used too to prevent the growth of bacteria, and stop the inflammation changes. Take a swig of the mouthwash after you must have brushed your teeth.

If the teeth are not taken care of well, plaque can become deposited on the teeth, which can mineralize, and worsen into calculus or tartar.

During your visits to the periodontist or dentist, the tartar deposits will be spotted and removed.

Immediately these deposits are exhumed, teeth will then be polished by using special cups and pastes in a bid to smoothen the surface. This will stop the accumulation of plaque.

What are the consequences of Periodontal disease?

One reason why tooth loss occurs is periodontitis. If Periodontitis is not treated, the structures that support the teeth, the surrounding bone become damaged.

The teeth are loosened from their roots and need extraction or merely fall out on their own.

The other problems that some persons may see are their teeth drifting when they eat, painful abscesses, the annoying sight of the teeth lengthening, with the guns receding and the roots being exposed.

One may think that leaving Periodontitis untreated can only affect the oral cavity, but that’s far from the truth.

Leaving Periodontitis untreated can lead to pregnancy complications like low birth weight, premature birth and pre-eclampsia. It also increases the possibility of one having diabetes and heart disease.

How Is Periodontitis Treated

Periodontitis is usually treated by doing the following:

Oral hygiene instruction and advice

Taking your oral hygiene seriously can help to clamp down on the number of bacteria in your mouth, which then reduces the inflammation level. The dentist will advise you to brush, floss and gargle with mouthwash often.

Professional cleaning

Those soft deposits can be exhumed by a dentist, and the teeth are then polished. You may need to go see the dentist regularly to get this done.

Antibiotic therapy

Whether microbiological analysis is done or not, a lot of dentists use antibiotics to treat active gum infections, which do not want to respond to treatment.

Corrective treatment

If Periodontitis has worsened, the dentist may decide to carry out a surgery, where local anaesthesia will be used.