What, Doctor? I have gum disease?

You have just visited your dentist and were informed that you have gum disease! How could this happen when you brush and see your dentist regularly every six months? Seems hard to believe, but people many times hear this when they visit their dentist.

The American Academy of Periodontlogy, which is the organization responsible for the research and treatment techniques of gum disease, states that approximately 87% of all people in the U.S. have some form of gum disease. This disease can range from gingivitis to periodontitis. This silent, painless killer of teeth can come from nowhere and eventually cause you to loose your beautiful pearls.

The first sign of gum disease is bleeding gums, which means you have an infection present in your mouth. Let this problem go untreated, and eventually you will have pain and loose your teeth.

The only reliable method of detecting early problems is to have your dentist perform a complete periodontal examination, delicately probing all of the gum tissue adjacent to each tooth. The readings taken during this probing will enable your dentist to diagnosis how advanced your disease may be.

As a person ages, they may develop a higher incidence of this disease. Many times, hormonal changes, stress, improper diet, improper hygiene and defective dental restorations can bring gum disease seemingly out of nowhere.

Next week, we will look at different methods of preventing and treating this silent killer of teeth.

Last week your dentist informed you that you have gum disease. Now let's look at what you can do to prevent and/or treat this disease.

Ideally, you should be seeing your dentist or hygienist every 3,4, or 6 months depending on the care you need. Many people think they need to be seen only once every 6 months. In reality, most adults over the age of 30 should be seeing their own dentist or hygienist more frequently for preventive care. Research has proven that adults on a closely monitored system have significantly less problems with gum disease and other oral health problems. This in turn, leads to less time and money on dental care for themselves and their families. We all know which is best-changing the oil in our cars every 2000 miles or every 10,000 miles!

In some situations your dentist may recommend a "Soft Tissue Management" program for slight to moderate gum disease. This program consists of a series of appointments where segments of your mouth are treated by a method called Root Planning. These active treatments visits are generally quite painless and an excellent solution to manage the disease. Once the root planing procedures are completed, an appointment to polish the teeth is made. At that time, the gums are evaluated to determine whether you should schedule your visits every 3, 4, or 6 months.

All this may sound time consuming and costly, but consider the alternative SURGERY when your condition gets worse! Prevention saves time and money!

Next week we will look at a new, relatively painless technique for advanced gum disease-laser Surgery.

Last week, we looked at preventive and non-surgical therapy techniques to treat this silent killer of teeth. Today, we will focus on treating the more advanced stages of gum disease with new state of the art instruments and techniques.

Surgical treatment falls into two general methods, the first being conventional incision methods utilizing a scalpel which is ordinarily much more time consuming and more painful. There are generally more post-operative problems such as pain, swelling and the need for stitches. Until recently, this was the only method of surgically treating this illness, now there is laser surgery.

The laser offers the following advantages over conventional surgery: It sterilizes as it cuts, it causes virtually no bleeding, patients experience minimal swelling and scarring and there is a reduction in operative time because of decreased bleeding and reduced need for stitches. With the laser, the surgery is significantly less painful, and post-operative pain is minimal. The mere fact that a dentist is using a laser can make the procedure seem less menacing to the patient. In addition, most people can be treated in one session which eliminates the need for repetitive visits.

One of the challenges when using laser within the mouth is the proximity of different kinds of tissue to one another. Careful patient selection for specific types of soft-tissue dental surgery is critical to the success in laser surgery treatment.

For more information about the use of lasers in dental surgery, please call St. Lukes Ambulatory Services in Milwaukee at 649-638.

Dr. Pinero is currently the Chief of Dental Surgery at St. Luke's Hospital in Milwaukee. He is a clinical professor at Marquette University School of Dentistry in the department of diagnostic and surgical sciences. Dr. Pinero lectures locally and nationally to physicians and dentists about techniques he employs in his practice of dentistry.

Dr. Pinero has been in practice with his wife in Milwaukee for 11 years where they emphasize comprehensive adult restorative dentistry.

If you have any suggestions for future topics or have a specific question you would like answered, please call Dr. Pinero's office at 282-2050 or write to 7308 W. Layton Ave., Greenfield Wl, 53220.