Non-Surgical Gum Treatment
“The mouth is the barometer of the whole body.”
Sir William Osler, 19th Century Physician and Researcher
“Severe periodontal disease is equvalent to a wound of about 8 square inches on your skin!!!!!”
Denise Grady, American Academy of Periodontology, Chicago, New York Times News February 1998
Periodontal disease
- Periodontal disease is an infection between your teeth and gums.
- By-products of bacterial infections cause bone loss; therefore, loosening of the teeth and tooth loss.
- Periodontal disease is a long-term degenerative disease that must be controlled.
- The treatment of choice is no longer surgery. Anti-infective therapy is usually successful without gum surgery.
- Microbiological tests and anti-infective therapies are used in the treatment of gum infection in the same way your physician would culture and treat an infected wound.
- Treatment takes into account both local factors and systemic risk factors treating causes, not just effects.
- There are steps you can take at home to combat bacterial growth under your gums, such as using irrigating devices with anti-infective solutions.
- Toothbrushes, dental floss and mouthwash are designed to clean your teeth, NOT to effectively treat destructive bacterial infections under your gums.
- Using hand and ultrasonic instruments, our hygienists meticulously clean the teeth, gums and root surfaces in combination with anti-infective irrigants.
The method is a combination of treatments, including a non-invasive chemical debriding therapy used in conjunction with traditional mechanical debriding procedures. The chemical therapy involves a tray delivery of doctor-prescribed solutions to chemically debride biofilm from the periodontal pocket and alter the pocket’s microbiological environment to disrupt biofilm growth.
Perio Protect – What is Perio Protect?
The standard cleaning procedures in dental offices (e.g. scaling and root planing) help remove plaque and tartar and help reduce bacteria, but unfortunately bacteria reproduce quickly and biofilms regenerate very easily, so it is difficult to control them between office visits.
With the Perio Protect Method, you can place prescribed solutions into periodontal pockets with an appropriately formed, customized dental tray between office visits to help manage biofilm. Although a dentist must choose the most appropriate solution for individual patients, the most commonly prescribed solution with the Method has oxidizing and oxygenating agents. Oxidizing agents debride (chemically remove) the slimy protective coating of a biofilm and its underlying layers and also cleanse the oral wounds.
Dentists may choose to treat the oral wounds with the chemical debriding and cleansing agents before mechanical debriding procedures to help reduce bacterial populations and thus reduce the risk of introducing bacteria into the bloodstream during mechanical debridement.
For most people following the Perio Protect Method, the placement of prescribed solutions into a periodontal pocket via a customized prescription tray requires only minutes each day. Patients describe the tray delivery as comfortable and appreciate its non-invasive technology.
The actual combination of mechanical treatment, chemical therapies, and prescribed treatment plan is determined by a dentist evaluating your specific conditions.