It’s been a long road back to oral health for you after periodontal (gum) disease. But after several plaque removal sessions and perhaps even surgical procedures to address deep infection, your gums have regained their healthy pink appearance.

But now you must face a hard reality: because you’ve had gum disease you’ll need to be extra vigilant with your oral hygiene to avoid another round with this destructive disease. But don’t worry—you won’t have to fight your prevention battle alone. We’ll continue to provide you care that reduces your risk of re-infection. We call that care periodontal maintenance (PM).

The heart of PM care involves regular dental visits for monitoring, cleanings and treatment when necessary. While most patients may visit their dentist at least twice a year, as a previous gum disease patient we may advise more frequent visits, especially if you’ve just finished periodontal treatment. Depending on the extent of your disease, we may begin with a visit every other week or once every two to three months. If your mouth continues to be disease-free we may suggest increasing the time between visits.

During your visit we’ll carefully examine your mouth, as well as screen you for any signs of potential oral cancer. We’re looking for both signs of re-infection or new issues with your teeth and gums. We’ll also assess the effectiveness of your oral hygiene efforts and advise you on ways you can improve.

If we find any signs of disease, we’ll then formulate a treatment plan to effectively deal with it. With frequent visits we have a better chance of discovering re-infection early—and the earlier the better to minimize any further damage. We may also need to take steps to make future PM care easier. This could include gum surgery to alter the tissues around certain teeth for easier access for examination and cleaning.

Our main focus with PM care is to look ahead: what can we do now to prevent a future bout of gum disease or at least lessen its effect? With continued monitoring and care we can drastically reduce your risk for further damage from this destructive disease.

If you would like more information on post-gum disease maintenance, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Periodontal Cleanings.”

Did you make any New Year's resolutions this year? For many of us, these pledges reflect a sincere desire for self-improvement—whether it's in terms of our career, our personal lives, or our health. Yet it isn't always possible to keep every promise we make…and while exercising every day and cutting out desserts are worthwhile goals, they may also be very difficult to maintain. Fortunately, when you resolve to improve your oral health, there are some simple things you can do to help keep your smile looking healthy and bright.

Get Into the Oral Hygiene Habit

Got a minute? How about two minutes, twice a day? If so, you have time to brush your teeth properly. According to the American Dental Association (ADA), brushing twice daily with a soft-bristled brush that fits comfortably in your mouth—and replacing that brush every three to four months—is essential to good oral hygiene. The ADA also recommends flossing once a day to clean all the places where your brush can't reach—like in between teeth and under the gum line. Brushing and flossing are the best ways to maintain good oral hygiene at home.

Think Before You Drink

Here's another way to make a big difference in your oral health: Pass up those sugary and acidic drinks, and choose plain, refreshing water instead. We're talking about regular and diet soda, as well as fruit juice and those so-called “sports” or “energy” drinks. The sugar and acid in these drinks can spell disaster for your teeth: Sugar promotes the growth of bacteria that can cause tooth decay, while acid softens the hard enamel covering of your teeth, allowing cavities to get started. Water, on the other hand, satisfies your body's need for hydration without adding calories or harmful ingredients. That what makes it the best drink for your diet—and your oral health.

See Your Dentist Regularly

There are some jobs best left to the pros—like removing the hardened deposits called “tartar” from your teeth, and checking for tooth decay, gum disease and other oral health problems. We'll take care of all that at your routine dental checkup. Plus, you'll get a thorough cleaning and a chance to “brush up” on oral hygiene techniques that can help you keep your mouth healthy throughout the year.

If you have questions about improving your oral hygiene, please contact our office or schedule a consultation. You can learn more in the Dear Doctor magazine articles “Daily Oral Hygiene” and “Think Before You Drink.”

The human body’s immune system has amazing defensive capabilities. Without it a common cold or small wound could turn deadly.

One of the more important processes of the immune system is inflammation, the body’s ability to isolate diseased or injured tissue from unaffected tissue. Ironically, though, this vital component of the healing process could actually cause harm if it becomes chronic.

This often happens with periodontal (gum) disease, an infection of the gums caused by bacterial plaque built up on teeth due to inadequate hygiene, which in turn triggers inflammation. The infection is often fueled by plaque, however, and can become difficult for the body to overcome on its own. A kind of trench warfare sets in between the body and the infection, resulting in continuing inflammation that can damage gum tissues. Untreated, the damage may eventually lead to tooth and bone loss.

In treating gum disease, our main goal is to stop the infection (and hence the inflammation) by aggressively removing plaque and calculus (tartar). Without plaque the infection diminishes, the inflammation subsides and the gums can begin to heal. This reduces the danger to teeth and bone and hopefully averts their loss.

But there’s another benefit of this treatment that could impact other inflammatory conditions in the body. Because all the body’s organic systems are interrelated, what occurs in one part affects another especially if it involves inflammation.

It’s now theorized that reducing gum inflammation could lessen inflammation in other parts of the body. Likewise, treating other conditions like high blood pressure and other risk factors for inflammatory diseases could lower your risk of gum disease and boost the effectiveness of treatment.

The real key is to improve and maintain your overall health, including your teeth and gums. Practice daily brushing and flossing to remove plaque, and visit your dentist regularly for more thorough cleanings. And see your dentist at the first sign of possible gum problems like bleeding, redness or swelling. You’ll not only be helping your mouth you could also be helping the rest of your body enjoy better health.

If you would like more information on the relationship between gum disease and other systemic conditions, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “The Link between Heart & Gum Diseases.”

November is National Diabetes Month—a good time to look at the connection between diabetes and oral health. While it’s important for everyone to take care of their teeth and gums, it may be especially important for people with diabetes.

People whose diabetes is not well controlled have a higher risk of infections in the mouth, especially gum disease, also called periodontal disease. Advanced periodontal disease is the number one cause of tooth loss among adults. Not only does diabetes put you at risk of oral health problems, it goes both ways. Periodontal disease can lead to higher blood sugar levels in people with diabetes and may increase the risk of complications such as heart and kidney problems.

But here’s some good news: People who take good care of their teeth and gums may have better blood sugar levels and, conversely, better blood sugar levels generally result in better gum health. Many people successfully avoid complications of diabetes by taking good care of themselves, including their teeth and gums. Here are some things you can do to help control your diabetes:

• Eat right, exercise and watch your weight for better blood sugar control.
• Keep up with your oral hygiene routine at home.
• Schedule regular dental visits and cleanings.

Better oral health combined with better blood sugar control will reduce your risk of complications from diabetes. Your dental care team can help you maintain the best oral health for better diabetes control.

If you have questions about diabetes and oral health, please contact our office or schedule a consultation. To learn more, read the Dear Doctor magazine article “Diabetes & Periodontal Disease.”

Your teeth’s hard, enamel coating protects them from environmental dangers or disease. But although it’s made of the hardest substance in the human body, enamel isn’t invincible — prolonged exposure to acid can cause dental erosion, a condition in which the enamel’s mineral content permanently dissolves, a process known as de-mineralization.

De-mineralization occurs anytime our mouth environment becomes too acidic due to eating or drinking items with high acid content. Saliva normally neutralizes mouth acid in thirty minutes to an hour after we eat, as well as restores mineral content to the enamel (re-mineralization). Danger arises, though, if the saliva’s buffering action is overwhelmed by chronic acidity, caused mainly by constant snacking or sipping on acidic foods and beverages throughout the day — in this situation, saliva can’t complete the process of buffering and re-mineralization.

As a result, the enamel may permanently lose its mineral content and strength over time. This permanent dental erosion leads to serious consequences: the teeth become more susceptible to decay; the dentin becomes exposed, which causes pain and sensitivity to pressure and temperature changes; and changes in the teeth’s size and color can negatively alter your appearance.

It’s important to take action then before dental erosion occurs. Along with daily oral hygiene, restrict your consumption of acidic foods and beverages to meal times and cut back on between-meal snacks. Rather than a sports drink after exercising, drink nature’s hydrator — water. You should also alter your brushing habits slightly — rather than brush right after you eat, wait thirty minutes to an hour. This gives saliva time to restore the mouth to its normal pH and re-mineralize the enamel. Brushing right after can remove even more of the minerals in softened enamel.

If significant erosion has occurred, there are a number of treatment options we can undertake to preserve remaining tooth structure and enhance your appearance. In moderate cases, we can reshape and cover damaged teeth using dental materials like composite resins or porcelain to fill decayed areas or cover teeth with veneers or crowns.

The key of course, is to identify dental erosion through clinical examination as soon as possible to minimize damage. Your enamel plays a critical role in protecting your teeth from disease — so take the right steps to protect your enamel.

If you would like more information on protecting your enamel, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Dental Erosion.”