Gum Care
The gums form the supporting structure of our teeth and their maintenance and well being is just as important to the oral health as that of any teeth. Gum disease is an inflammation of the gum that can progress to affect the bone that surrounds and supports your teeth. The three stages of gum disease — from least to most severe — are gingivitis, periodontitis and advanced periodontitis. The deposits (plaque and calculus) gets deposited under & over gums and are described as :-
Supragingival
In here, the deposits are above the level of gum line and adhere only to the crown part of tooth. Number of sittings can be decided on the severity of condition only.
Subgingival
This kind of deposits get accumulated beneath the gum line and adhere to the root part of the tooth, thus destroying the teeth's soft tissue attachments and dissolving the supporting bone. Cleaning in such case becomes a little more complex than that of supragingival deposits and might need a flap surgery.
Flap surgery
Gingival flap surgery is required when the periodontal pockets are very deep and do not heal with conservative therapy. The depths of the pockets do not allow adequate cleaning and elimination of infection resulting in bone loss. Surgical correction is required to eliminate chronic infection. By using a flap procedure access is gained to the root surface. Bony defects are corrected and inflamed tissue is removed. Correction of bone loss involves meticulous graft placement followed by membrane stabilisation. All in all, chronic poor oral hygiene leads to many complications and their management although possible is complex none the less. It's just simpler to have a good oral hygiene and visit your dentist for frequent check ups.
Esthetic gingival procedure:
