A periodontist dentist – who is he and what does he treat, what inflammation of the gums and other pathological processes are in the area of responsibility of this doctor?
Everyone knows that the most important role in the smooth functioning of the entire human body is played by the health of the oral cavity. When individual functions are lost, the work of most internal organs and systems is disrupted. It is for this reason that all people need to take care of themselves and perform preventive procedures, not only to preserve the aesthetics of a smile.
When inflammation and other problems appear, a narrow-profile specialist comes to the rescue, who knows exactly how to cope with disorders affecting the mucous membranes, and hard and soft tissues.
Who is a periodontist
This is a doctor of the highest class who diagnoses, treats, and helps prevent periodontal diseases. The latter is a complex system consisting of such structural elements as the gums, periodontium (the layer between the dental cement and the socket wall, which consists mainly of collagen fibers and holds the tooth in the alveolus), the alveolar process (the place where the incisors, canines, and molars are attached). Root cement (special bone formation).
What symptoms should you see a specialist with?
Of course, you should not bring the situation to the appearance of pronounced signs. To do this, it is important to visit the dental clinic regularly (at least once every six months) for preventive examinations. Unfortunately, most people neglect this recommendation.
For successful therapy, it is important to detect manifestations of the pathological process as early as possible. It is necessary to inspect the mouth daily while performing standard hygiene procedures and pay attention to such suspicious phenomena as:
- Redness, swelling, and swelling of soft tissues in the oral cavity;
- Bleeding of mucous membranes during brushing;
- Bad taste, bad breath;
- Ulceration, erosion, cystic growths;
- The formation of periodontal pockets between the gums and teeth;
- Discharge of purulent exudate from the resulting gaps;
- Loosening of healthy dental units;
- Discomfort at the base of the crown;
- Change in the angle of incisors, canines, or molars;
- Formation of fluid when pressed.
The listed symptoms are a reason to contact a professional as soon as possible. If you do not do this on time and do not start high-quality comprehensive treatment, you should be prepared for the appearance of serious health problems.
What pathologies does a periodontist treat?
The scope of this doctor includes the treatment of various problems of the oral cavity. What experts call the gum disease that this dentist specializes in:
- Periodontitis;
- Periodontal disease;
- Gingivitis;
- Tooth root cyst;
- Periostitis;
- Pericoronitis.
Each disease is characterized by certain symptoms and is diagnosed and treated specially. Let’s dwell on each of them in more detail.
Periodontitis
This is inflammation of the tissues that surround the incisors, canines, and molars. It leads to destructive processes of ligaments of dental units with bone structures and the formation of gingival pockets with the separation of purulent exudate. Characteristic signs:
- Bleeding gums;
- Pain syndrome;
- Increased sensitivity to temperature changes;
- Bad breath.
Untimely access to the doctor threatens with loosening and loss of teeth. In this case, the patient will have to visit an orthopaedist who will restore the destroyed rows with the help of implantation or prosthetics.
The periodontist, after diagnosing periodontitis, sanitizes and cleans the oral cavity. If necessary, curettage is performed. In the most severe cases, surgical intervention is indispensable.
periodontal disease
Atrophic changes in the periodontium contribute to the resolution of the connections of dental units with the alveolar processes of the jaw apparatus. Pathology progresses rapidly. At first, the patient feels a slight discomfort in a certain area in the mouth. Then there is swelling of the gums, bleeding appears and it settles.
Subsequently, the teeth become loose. There is always a putrid smell in the mouth, which cannot be eliminated with the help of professional hygiene products. Wedge-shaped defects of the enamel layer are formed.
The doctor performs restorative measures to strengthen the bonds between the gum tissue and dental units, as well as stimulate local blood circulation. The patient must perform physiotherapeutic procedures, take medications, exercise regular hygiene, and undergo ultrasound cleaning. At advanced stages, the crowns deviate from the vertical plane, so splinting is carried out with specialized arcs.
Gingivitis
The disease is accompanied by inflammation mainly of the edge of the gingival tissue and its sections in the interdental spaces. The lesion covers the mucous membranes, while the bones are not affected. The pathological process is considered the least dangerous for the oral cavity than those listed above.
Varieties:
- Catarrhal;
- Ulcerative;
- Hypertrophic.
Symptoms:
- Bleeding and soreness of the gums when performing hygiene procedures and eating solid foods;
- The accumulation of a large amount of plaque in the cervical part, which is difficult to clean due to pain;
- Itching, swelling, redness, or cyanosis of the mucous membranes;
- Excretion of liquid secretion.
Pathology of the catarrhal type is usually accompanied by precisely these signs. In hypertrophic gingivitis, soft tissue overgrowth occurs additionally. A peptic ulcer is the formation of ulcers and necrosis of individual sections of the gingival structure.
With swelling and swelling, therapy depends on the severity of the symptoms, as well as the stage of the pathological process (chronic, acute).
During treatment, it is necessary to eliminate deposits using ultrasound. Then the affected areas are treated with an antiseptic composition. The doctor additionally imposes an anti-inflammatory gel. The listed activities are among the priority mandatory measures that are taken during the initial visit to a specialist. In the future, it is necessary that the patient independently maintain daily hygiene, and use antiseptics and anti-inflammatory compounds for 10 days or more.
As a rule, with such a pathology, the ligaments of the teeth and gums are not affected. However, in the absence of high-quality therapy, the disease can develop into periodontitis. That is why when bleeding occurs, you need to contact dentistry as soon as possible.
Cyst
The cystic formation is formed in the upper part of the root of the dental unit. From the inside, it is lined with a layer of epithelium and filled with a liquid secret. Often the disease is latent, that is, it is not accompanied by severe symptoms, which means that the patient does not feel any pathological changes. Everything is revealed by chance on x-rays.
If no action is taken for a long time, bone tissue deformation occurs. The risk of a jaw fracture increases significantly. Cysts are removed only with the help of surgery.
Periostitis
A doctor for the treatment of both teeth and gums is necessary for flux – this is the name of this disease differently. This is an inflammatory process in the periosteum. The periosteum covers the bones of the jaw and nourishes it through passing blood vessels.
Pathology often appears in the presence of untreated diseases in dental units. In addition, the lesion site can become infected in other ways, when pathological agents first enter the bloodstream or lymph.
Flux is a purulent abscess. It can visually resemble a solid tumour formation on the mucous membranes or have a hole (fistula) to remove the emerging pus.
In patients with periostitis, external changes occur. The face is seen as asymmetrical and deformed.
In addition to swelling and swelling, other symptoms are also observed:
- Loosening of incisors, canines, or molars;
- Redness, cyanosis of the mucous membranes in the mouth;
- Enlargement and soreness of the lymph nodes in the neck, and face;
- A sharp jump in body temperature up to 38 degrees and above
- General deterioration of health, weakness;
- Pain syndrome extending to most of the oral cavity, temples, ears, and eyes.
To cure the pathology, you need to open the flux and clean the contents of the abscess. To this end, the doctor uses an injectable aesthetic, excised the gum, removes pus, puts drainage to release the entire secret, and extracts the dental unit, if it was it that caused the infection.
In addition to cleansing procedures, comprehensive treatment should be performed, which can last quite a long time. You will have to drink medicines, including antibacterial ones. If the chronic phase is diagnosed, the patient will have to work on strengthening the immune system. Perhaps the specialist will prescribe vitamin-mineral complexes and immunomodulators.
Physiotherapy is often indicated. For example, laser treatment, exposure to ultra-high frequencies, magnetic therapy, and electrophoresis are used.
How Often Should You Brush Your Teeth? What is the Best Time to Brush Your Teeth?
Pericoronitis
This is a pathological phenomenon that occurs if the process of eruption of “eights”, or the so-called wisdom teeth, is delayed. The unit is located directly under the gum for a long time, and because of this, inflammation of nearby tissues develops.
To prevent unpleasant symptoms, the doctor performs an excision of the hood hanging over the crown, thereby freeing up space for the exit of the molar.
What does a dentist-periodontist do at an appointment for all its stages
Before you get to a specialist, you must first register with him. At the same time, it is important to take into account the age category of the patient, since there are highly specialized doctors for both adults and children. If the case is urgent, the dental clinic will accept it without an appointment.
First of all, in dentistry, they should listen to what a person is complaining about, then carefully examine the oral cavity, conduct the necessary examinations and diagnose the pathology. After an accurate diagnosis, various therapeutic regimens are developed, from which the most optimal and, at first glance, the most effective are selected. Then preventive recommendations are brought to the patient, which will have to be followed to prevent the recurrence of the disease.
Survey
The doctor talks with the patient to find out the main complaints and identify possible factors that contributed to the development of the pathological process. All questions of a specialist should be answered truthfully, without hiding the symptoms, since this directly affects the accuracy of the diagnosis and the quality of the prescribed therapy.
What the dentist finds out first of all:
- Chronic and other concomitant diseases in history;
- Recent illnesses;
- Carrying out various manipulations in the oral cavity in the past;
- The presence of bad habits (excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, etc.);
- Allergic reactions to various substances.
After the doctor treating the gums finds out all this, a list of necessary diagnostic examinations and other procedures is called and assigned, and the most thorough examination of the hard and soft tissues in the mouth is performed.
Diagnostic methods
Visual inspection is extremely important because the specialist can identify the affected areas and assess the degree of pathological changes. In doing so, the physician:
- Evaluates the condition of the skin and mucous membranes, maxillofacial apparatus, and bite;
- Probes the lymph nodes under the lower jaw to diagnose a probable inflammatory process;
- Carefully examines the dental units, gingival structures, and the inner surface of the cheeks, palate, tongue, and pharynx.
To conduct the highest quality inspection, tools such as a mirror and a spatula are used. After this procedure, along with the survey, a preliminary diagnosis is made. Subsequently, it can be confirmed or refuted after X-ray and other research methods. What kind of apparatus will be used for the picture depends on the choice of the specialist. This can be a dental, panoramic type device or a CT scanner.
When planning implantation or surgery, it is necessary to pass blood and urine tests, biopsy, bacterioscopy, and cytology. In addition, you will have to check for allergies to substances in the composition of the drugs used and implanted materials.
General recommendations for patients
This highly specialized doctor, called a periodontist, treats gums in both mild and severe cases. However, it is better not to bring the situation to the appearance of serious symptoms, so it is extremely important to carry out regular high-quality oral care. Preventive advice from dentists:
- Visit the clinic annually for prevention purposes, without waiting for the characteristic signs of pathologies;
- in the event of suspicious symptoms, do not delay a visit to the dental office;
- Use a high-quality brush and paste;
- Rinse your mouth well with clean water after each meal.
Comprehensive care for your smile does not allow the development of serious pathological processes that are difficult to treat. Most of the diseases listed above can be prevented if you do not neglect care procedures and show up at the clinic at least once a year.
Conclusion
Thus, we have considered what a periodontist does in dentistry, and what gums (which are inflamed, irritated, and infected), mucous membranes, and other soft tissues are treated by such a professional. This narrow-profile specialist has the deepest knowledge of therapeutic methods used for serious diseases of the oral cavity, threatening severe complications.
During therapy, the doctor uses specialized equipment, prescribes medications, and uses special tools. To achieve maximum effectiveness of the medical intervention, a mandatory step is a comprehensive examination of the patient and the identification of factors that provoked the pathological process.