Periodontal Treatment in Houston, TX

Periodontitis or Gum Disease Treatment in Houston, TX

Periodontitis or gum disease can cause your gums to recede and loosen your teeth, thankfully with proper treatment, you don’t have to lose your teeth to disease. Trinity Dental Centers can successfully treat periodontal disease and restore your gums and teeth back to health!

What does periodontal treatment for gum disease involve?

If your dentist diagnoses you with periodontal disease, there is good news. You can still receive treatment successfully, through either non-surgical or surgical means. Non-surgical cleaning involves a special cleaning of the teeth called “scaling and root planing,” or SRP. This process removes plaque and tartar buildup on the surface of your teeth and roots. SRP allows gum tissue to heal and your periodontal pockets to shrink. Your Trinity Dental dentist might also recommend medicine to control infection or pain. These medications can involve a mouth rinse, a pill, or a substance they will place in your periodontal pockets immediately after the SRP procedure.

What happens after scaling and root planing?

At your next dental visit, a Trinity Dental specialist will check the depth of your periodontal pockets to see the effect of the SRP procedure. Usually, patients do not require further treatment at this point. However, if the periodontal pockets are deep and supporting bone loss is apparent, surgery may be required to prevent further bone loss from taking place. As the periodontal pockets enlarge, they become a site for bacteria to develop and harm surrounding bone and tissue. Surgery will help remove the inflamed tissue and reduce the damage to the bone that forms around the teeth.

What does surgery involve?

Surgery lets your dentist get to the difficult to reach areas in the mouth where plaque buildup occurs and eliminating the source of bacteria. Further procedures such as a bone surgery using a bone graft may be used to help regenerate bone loss from the periodontitis.

Your dentist might also use splints, bite guards, or other appliances to support the remaining teeth during the healing and bone regrowth process. If enough gum tissue has been lost, then a gum graft (soft-tissue) graft will also be performed. A gum graft will reduce further tissue damage and loss, and can be used to cover roots or areas where excessive gum loss occurs. During this procedure, tissue is taken from your palate to cover the exposed area of the tooth’s root or gumline.

At Trinity Dental Centers, our dental care staff is equipped with exceedingly trained and experienced dentists, periodontists, and oral surgeons who place your oral health at the highest priority.

We recommend our patients come in for more frequent checkups while undergoing periodontal treatment to ensure that they are healing properly, utilizing proper oral hygiene techniques, and receiving our help in keeping gums disease-free! Schedule an appointment today for more information!