Periodontitits: A Dangerous Disease You Don't Know About.

Hi everyone.  Today's post is going to deal with periodontitis, a very prevalent yet often overlooked disease.  In fact, studies indicate periodontitis afflicts 1 in 4 people in the U.S., and new research shows it effects not only our teeth but our entire body.  So what is periodontitis?  Well, its a bacterial infection of the gums and jawbone.  Plain and simple.  I could go on to talk about specific bacteria species, colonization factors, the chemical mediators of infection and inflammation, etc., but unless you're a biologist or have a curiosity streak that leans towards the nature of oral bacterial flora, I'll skip that level of sciencey talk in this post.  All you need to know is that malicious bacteria in your mouth colonize the area between your gums and teeth, and due to inflammation (your body's natural response to this or any infection) the bone and tissue that actually attaches your teeth to your body melts away.  Sometimes this bone/tissue loss occurs over the course of a year or two, but more often than not its a slow and insidious process that silently takes place over the course of many years.  Furthermore, often the only sign its even there is bleeding, slightly swollen gums.  Its only when your teeth literally become loose that you realize something is wrong.  By then, its often too late and the affected teeth will fall out on their own.

This scenario is all too common and the possibility of losing your teeth is enough to have a dentist intervene and eliminate this infection.  However, recent studies have revealed concrete evidence this chronic infection in your mouth has a very negative effect on the rest of your body.   Below are some facts about how periodontitis DEFINITELY effects the rest of your body:

• You have a 20% higher risk for a cardiovascular event (such as a heart attack) if your have periodontits.  That's a huge risk increase.
• Expectant mothers with periodontitis have a higher risk for having a low birthweight baby or a preterm delivery.
• Diabetes and periodontitis are intimately linked.  Diabetes will make your periodontal infection worse, and your periodontitis will make your diabetes worse.

As you can see, this isn't just bleeding gums we're talking about here.  This infection effects your overall health, your life expectancy, and the quality of your life.  So what can be done to stop this infection?  A lot, actually.  Procedures such as scaling and root planing, localized antibiotic placement, attachment regeneration, and more have been developed to end this infection.  Its more complicated to treat this disease then to fill a cavity, though, and an entire specialty exists to deal with it.  Due to the growing evidence showing how pervasive this disease is and how important it is to eliminate it, we've added Dr. Ivelina Dean, a certified periodontis, to our team of doctors.  She is extremely well qualified to handle the complexities of this disease using the most advanced treatments available and has already become an invaluable member of Northford Family Dental.

So if your gums bleed when your floss, if your teeth are loose, or if it your teeth look longer because your gums have receded, come see us and find out if you have periodontitis.  Its important for more than just your teeth.

Have a great day, guys!  And lets all collectively pray his warm weather is here to stay!

-DRS
Northford Family Dental