Stop Sore, Bleeding Gums With Our Gum Disease Treatments

If your gums are red, tender, or swollen, or if they usually bleed after you brush, you could have gum disease. If you ignore these symptoms, gum disease can progress and eventually lead to more serious problems. Thankfully, Dr. Cornell and the team at our Tulsa, OK dental office can help get rid of the disease and restore your health.

Q: How Do Gums Get A Disease?
Q: What Are The Signs Of Gum Disease?
Q: How Can Dr. Cornell Treat It?
Q: How Can I Prevent Getting Gum Disease?

Q: How Do Gums Get A Disease?

Tooth decay (which creates cavities) is caused by harmful bacteria living on the enamel of your teeth. They secrete an acid that decays the enamel. When these bacteria decide to live on your gums instead, that acid irritates the gums and can cause gum disease. If you don’t brush and floss regularly, or if you tend to skip your twice-yearly dental office visits, you are more likely to get gum disease.

There are two types of gum disease:

• Gingivitis is the early, less severe version. The bacteria are irritating the gums, but the disease can be treated and even reversed when caught this early.
• Periodontitis is the advanced, more severe version of gum disease. Those bacteria have managed to get into the gums, and you have a true infection. Once you have periodontitis, you cannot get rid of it. You can treat and manage the symptoms, but those bacteria cannot be removed for good.

Q: What Are The Signs Of Gum Disease?

The most common signs of gum disease include gums that are red, swollen, or tender. If you bleed from your gums when you brush and floss, that’s probably a sign that you have gingivitis or periodontitis. For some people, the gums start pulling away from the teeth, creating little pockets between the teeth and gums that allow even more bacteria to grow. Chronic bad breath is another sign. But to make sure gum disease really is present, we can do a biopsy where we test a small sample of your gum tissue for problems.

Q: How Can Dr. Cornell Treat It?

We offer several treatments for gum disease.

• Root planing and scaling is a deep cleaning treatment that gets rid of plaque and bacteria that are on the gums and on the teeth below the gumline.
• Perio rinses are antibacterial mouthwashes that can help get rid of plaque as well as attack the bacteria causing the problems.
• Arestin is an antibiotic treatment that rests in those pockets formed when gums start to pull away from teeth. It targets and helps get rid of the bacteria present, but unlike a perio rinse, Arestin can remain effective for days.

Q: How Can I Prevent Getting Gum Disease?

The best way to prevent gingivitis and periodontitis is by keeping your mouth clean. This gets rid of the tiny food particles that bacteria use to live and grow. Brush and floss regularly like you should. And make sure you schedule two appointments a year with our office for cleanings and exams. Dr. Cornell has the training and specialized tools to really clean your mouth well.

With our gum disease treatments, we can help stop your gums from being red or swollen or even from bleeding after you brush. Call us or email us today to schedule your next appointment.