For most of your life, taking good care of your oral health means preventing chronic concerns that could affect it. Gum disease is one of the most common of these concerns, and if it does develop, it can feel like you lost the battle to preserve your smile. However, the good news is that you still have time to save your smile from some of the most destructive consequences of gum disease. At our Overland Park, KS, dental office, we can perform custom gum disease management to help you effectively control gum disease and preserve your healthy smile for life.
What it means to have gum disease
The two most common dental issues are tooth decay and gum disease, which affect your healthy tooth structure and the gum tissues surrounding them (respectively). Gum disease presents a particularly worrisome concern – as it attacks the foundations of your smile, it’s the leading cause of adult tooth loss. Gum disease is caused by an excessive buildup of harmful oral bacteria underneath your gums, which infect the tissues and lead to rampant inflammation. Once it develops, it may not be possible to get rid of gum disease, though you can manage it to stop it from causing severe damage to your gums and jawbone.
The earlier you treat it, the better
The extent of treatment you need to manage your gum disease depends on exactly how severe it is. In early cases, you may only need periodontal cleaning, also known as scaling and root planing, to remove the harmful oral bacteria from underneath your gums. Routine care and maintenance may be necessary moving forward in order to keep the disease under control. In more severe cases, such as if you’ve lost teeth to the disease, then you may require more involved treatment, including replacing your lost teeth with an appropriate number of dental implants.
A lifetime of healthy smile management
If you fail to prevent gum disease and have to treat it, the good news is that treating it early can stop it from causing lasting damage to your smile. Also, managing gum disease in its earliest stages is simpler than waiting until it becomes more severe. By keeping up with good hygiene practices at home, including brushing and flossing your teeth at least twice every day, and visiting your dentist as often as recommended, you can still have an excellent chance at preserving the rest of your healthy smile.
Learn more about managing gum disease
If you have gum disease, then successfully managing it requires diligent care and attention, and help from your dentist. For more information, schedule your consultation by calling Family First Dental in Overland Park, KS, today at 913-381-2600.