Parodontopathy, a modern men disease. Everything about parodontopathy, how to recognize it, causes, symptoms, treatment, prevention…all in one place.
If you have been diagnosed with parodontopathy, it means that you belong to the more numerous side of the population, suffering from some form of this disease. Most of the adult population in our country, as in most other countries around the globe, frequently have this problem. But let’s first see what parodontopathy is.
By definition, parodontopathy is a periodontal disease which attacks the supporting tissue of the tooth, it’s progressive and degenerative by nature, therefore, it tends to progress and eventually worsens, and leads to moving, swinging and, eventually, losing tooth.
The fact that parodontopathy is so common, does not in any way diminish its seriousness. On the contrary, it speaks in favor of how important it is to take care of your teeth and regularly visit your dentist.
It is a chronic inflammation of the tissue that gives support, firmness and stability to the tooth. Periodontal disease, due to deep destruction of parodontium, leads to the removal of the necks and root of the teeth, their movement and weight, and, ultimately, tooth decay. The process begins with inflammation of the gums, frequent swelling and bleeding, and then pulling the gums, when the teeth gradually remain „nude” and look “longer” precisely because they lose the surrounding connective tissue.
This disease does not save anyone: it can occur early in childhood, as a form of aggressive periodontitis or, more often, in middle age and mature years, when we are talking about chronic periodontal disease.
Parodontopathy in phases
In the picture below, we see the display of a healthy tooth, then inflammation of the gum (gingivitis), the formation of periodontal pockets (periodontitis) and, finally, the terminal phase of periodontitis.
The first and most common pathological change that involves parodocytosis is inflammation of the gum, or gingivitis. It is characterized by very red, swollen, soft gums that bleed to the smallest touch. If the gums bleed while you brush your teeth, then you have gingivitis.
Inflammation of the gums is a mild form of periodontitis, which can be completely cured by daily brushing and flossing or tooth calculus removal and polishing in dental office.
In our office for the proper maintenance of oral hygiene, we most often recommend water jets which allow the controlled water jet under pressure to thoroughly clean the teeth and reach all those parts of teeth that are unavailable when brushing and flossing. At the same time, the water jet gently massages the gums and thereby improves the capillary circulation of the surrounding tissue. If gingivitis is not treated, the periodontal pockets, in which the remains of food accumulate (and, consequently, also numerous bacteria that continue to intensify destruction of the surrounding tissue and bones) lead to periodontitis, further destruction of the bone and periodontal ligaments that bind the tooth to the bone.
If neglected, the disease progresses to the terminal phase of periodontitis when the tooth begins to move and has to be removed. Periodontal disease is the most common cause of tooth loss in adults. It is important, however, to underline that it is hazardous to overall health and is closely related to other systemic diseases such as heart and lung disease, diabetes, and so on.
Causes of parodontopathy
The main cause of periodontal disease is dental plaque caused by poor hygiene of the mouth and teeth. Dental plaque is composed of food residues and bacteria from the oral cavity. The longer the dental plaque is on the teeth (not removed by washing with a brush and toothpaste), it more damages the gums and teeth and it is more difficult to remove it. It is the same dental plaque bacteria that cause chronic inflammation and the gums become red (when they are healthy, gums are pink), swollen and bleeding at the smallest touch, at the first contact with the brush. The plaque can not be removed by ordinary rinsing of the mouth. When neglected, the plaque starts to mineralize creating tooth stones (calculus), solid deposit which accumulates on the edges of the gums. Tooth calculus worsens the situation in two ways: because of its firmness it prevent tooth cleaning and at the same time mechanical pressure of the gums and thus prevents the necessary circulation so that the gums are swollen, red and painful and the way to the formation of periodontal pockets or deep tissue destruction is open.
In addition to poor and irregular hygiene, periodontitis can also be caused by drugs, poor genetic predispositions, inadequate nutrition, poor and neglected prosthetics … Anyway, proper and regular hygiene and regular visits to your dentist are the best possible prevention.
Periodontal disease and risk factors
We repeat that regular oral hygiene is the key to preventing periodontitis. There is no greater risk factor than the lack of proper oral hygiene and regular visits to the dentist. Your awareness of tooth health and taking care of your teeth, and indirectly, of your entire body is your biggest ally. When it is revealed in time in the first stage of gingivitis, periodontitis is completely curable without further complications.
Main risk factors:
– Insufficient and irregular hygiene: the first and main cause of the periodontal disease is poor hygiene or wrong brushing technique. When visiting a dentist, please inform yourself of the proper brushing technique.
– Smoking. Smoking is one of the most significant risk factors of parodontopathy. Smoking reduces blood circulation in the gums, reduces the body’s defense response to gum infection and prolongs the period of wound healing.
Smoking also increases the production of inflammatory substances (cytokines) that cause the destruction of the gum and bone tissue around the teeth. Smokers have reduced chances for successful treatment of periodontal disease.
– Hormonal changes. Most commonly affect women due to changes in estrogen and progesterone levels during the menstrual cycle or during pregnancy. Of course, with regular controls, these changes are easily controlled.
– Diabetes. People with diabetes have a higher risk of developing infections, including the periodontal disease.
– Other diseases. Diseases such as cancer or AIDS, as well as drugs used in the treatment of these diseases (cytostatics), can negatively affect the health of the gums and surrounding tissue, as well as the overall state of the organism.
– Medicines. Many drugs reduce the salivation of the saliva, which has a protective role in preserving the health of the gums and teeth (medicines for blood pressure regulation, regulation of excretion, antidepressants). Without enough saliva in the mouth, the gums become more sensitive to infection and gingivitis develops, and then periodontitis as well. Also, some medicines cause excessive growth and swelling of the gums, which makes the correct hygiene more difficult.
– Poor and insufficient nutrition
– Genetics. Some people do not have any of the previously mentioned risk factors, but are genetically predisposed to suffer more often from periodontal disease than others due to hereditary factors.
So, if you notice any of symptom listed bellow, contact your dentist as soon as possible:
– Constant bad breath
– Red or swollen gums
– Sensitivity of gums that bleed to the smallest touch (while brushing)
– Painful chewing
– Tooth migration and decay
– The appearance of the gap between the teeth
– Tooth sensitivity
– Gum retraction
Therapy of periodontitis
This, beyond any doubt, is the most frequent question of patients with this problem. It should be noted that the treatment plan and the treatment approach are determined on the basis of the stage of periodontal disease, or the stage in which the patient is affected. Therefore, the treatment plan for periodontal disease depends on the condition of the tooth support tissue. As soon as the patient begins to seek help, the disease will be stopped more effectively.
We have to underline immediately that the therapy is long lasting because periodontitis is a reversible condition and must be controlled.
The best and long lasting solution is – prevention, meaning regular and proper brushing and regular controls with your dentist. Without an adequate hygiene, there is no successful treatment for periodontal disease, and correct brushing is crucial, preferably after each meal, and inevitably in the morning and in the evening.
In the initial phase, when gingivitis occurs, treatment is very simple because the pockets are insignificant and do not require special treatment. The teeth are clinically cleaned , and the dental stone (hard, mineralized deposits) and dental plaque are successfully removed by ultrasound. After ultrasound treatment, we polish teeth with brushes and rubbers until complete removal of deposits. We recommend mouthwash with special solutions, and in some cases prescribe an antibiotic therapy.
In more advanced forms of parodontopathy it is most important that the progression at least slows down and stops, as the goal is to prevent the formation of a more severe form. Depending on the stage, we approach this disease in several ways: conservative, surgical, prosthetic, or combined.
If periodontal pockets are clearly visible, we perform their complete elimination or significant reduction, removing the pathologically altered tissue of the parodontium. Depending on the position of the periodontal pockets and other features, we treat them with curettage or surgically (flap surgery).
It’s painless intervention and is done in local anesthesia. In cases of severe bone destruction and the presence of deep pockets, where possible, we compensate defects with artificial bones.
After the intervention, the gingiva is seized, and the stitches are removed after ten days. In cases of loss of one or more teeth, as a result of the terminal stage of periodontal disease, we approach the prosthetic care of the patient, which would be a “combined” approach. Of course, it is necessary to have extraordinary hygiene of the mouth and teeth in order to keep the work in the mouth and prevent periodontal disease!
In our dental office we also perform laser therapy of parodontopathy. It is a minimally invasive surgical intervention which is painless. During this intervention, the soft wall of periodontal pockets and granulation tissue is removed while simultaneously providing and improving biological healing, with maximum reparatory potential.
Medical advice
“Better prevent than cure” is the advice you usually hear from your doctors, but when this disease is involved, it’s really all- in- one sentence. We saw that periodontitis affects almost 90% of the adult population, that it is the main cause of tooth loss, that it is progressive and degenerative and that it only worsens over time, affecting the entire body. In order to preserve your health and the health of your teeth, take care! Regular and proper hygiene and regular controls are the best, fastest and cheapest solution!
