Periodontic Treatments

If you find your gums bleeding easily and looking red and swollen, do not waste any time in making a visit to our Riverside dentist. This may be the beginning of gingivitis, or inflammation of the gums. If gingivitis is not properly treated, it will progress and can cause tooth loss along with loss of bone.

Periodontal disease is the result of incomplete removal of plaque from the teeth. A buildup of plaque will, in time, create an inflamed condition of the gums. If left untreated, this inflammation will turn into an infection within the gums that can destroy tissue and bone.

A visit to our dentist in Riverside will determine how far the condition has progressed. The proper treatment will depend on the level of periodontal disease that is present within the gums. If the infection has not yet reached the bone, a scaling and root planing procedure will usually be sufficient to clear the infection. In this procedure, special instruments are used to scrape tartar and plaque from the teeth, and the root surfaces will be thoroughly cleaned. Lasers are also effective in this type of procedure.

If you notice any signs of gum disease, such a bleeding while brushing, swollen and red gum, it is best to receive treatment from our periodontist in Riverside as soon as possible.

Riverside Periodontist

For conditions where the infection is more advanced, oral surgery will be performed to clear up the infection. One such procedure is a pocket reduction. When pockets form around the teeth due to infection and the destruction of gum tissue and bone, our Riverside periodontist will pull back the gum tissue, remove the bacteria and attach the gum tissue back into place. If the damaged bone has left any roughness, this will also be smoothed out before the tissue is reattached.

Cosmetic procedures can address the issue of uneven gums due to damage. When the gums have receded and too much of the teeth are showing, a graft can fill out the gum line. If too much gum tissue is showing, the excess tissue can be removed so that more of the teeth will show.

For severe cases of disease where loss of teeth have occurred, our periodontist in Riverside can use a dental implant to replace any missing teeth.

Gum disease has a devastating nature that can affect your health, from gums and teeth to heart. Contact out Riverside periodontist to learn more about this disease.