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Gum Treatment: An All-In-One Guide
The health of your gums is often overlooked by the everyday person, as making sure teeth are white is typically the main concern. In fact, studies estimate that over 50% of the U.S. population forgets to floss, the main method of taking care of the gums when brushing their teeth. Apopka Smiles is here to guide you regarding all things gum treatment in Florida.
What Is Gum Treatment?
Gum treatment is a method of helping to prevent or treat periodontitis (the medical name for gum disease). Methods of treatment differ depending upon which stage of disease progression you are in but typically include scaling, root planing, flap surgery, and even the removal of teeth.
So what exactly do these procedures entail?
Scaling happens when a dentist removes tartar from the surface of a tooth. Tartar is the calcified deposit left behind after an accumulation of plaque. Root planing, on the other hand, is the process by which a dentist removes an infected tooth structure.
Flap surgery is a method in which, under anesthesia, the dentist lifts the gums of a patient back in order to remove tartar. Doing this allows for the complete removal of tartar from typically hard-to-reach places.
Of course, if the gum disease has progressed, providers of gum treatment in Florida, may be forced to remove the teeth of patients and begin discussing dentures or implants.
What is Gum Disease?
So you may be wondering what exactly gum disease is, and how you can spot it.
Gum disease, or periodontitis, causes damage to the skin surrounding the teeth. In its early stages, it often presents through abnormally red or swollen gum tissue. Many also experience bad breath or bleeding when brushing.
If you experience any of these, now is the time to go to get gum treatment in Florida.
What Causes Gum Disease?
Gum disease is almost always due to poor dental hygiene, especially a lack of flossing. Flossing helps to remove plaque buildup from the areas around the teeth, which prevents it from calcifying and turning into tartar. As mentioned above, it is this trapped tartar which causes damage to the gums.
Fun fact: you should floss before you brush, as this releases the trapped particles to be washed away and allows for your toothpaste to clean your teeth more efficiently. If you use toothpaste with fluoride in it, removing these particles also helps the fluoride coat the teeth.
Your gum health is vitally important to your overall oral hygiene and should not be overlooked. It is recommended that patients see their dentists at least twice a year. Those with early stages of gum disease should be going in for treatment every three to six months.
Think you might be in need of gum treatment in Florida? Apopka Smiles is here to help! We’ll help you make sure your gums are healthy for years to come.
