Gum diseases affect a large number of people for various reasons, and they may not realize that they have it in the first place, and the symptoms are often mild at first and then develop and lead to tooth loss, if it is not dealt with early.
The New York Times I published a report explaining the symptoms of gum disease, how to monitor it, and ways to prevent it, and presented a “simple” solution in the end.
The report says that about half of adults in the United States, over the age of 30, show signs of gum disease, and 9 percent of them suffer from severe symptoms.
Diagnosis
The report says that if your sputum is light pink at least twice a week after brushing or flossing your teeth, you are likely to have gum disease in its early stages, and in severe cases, sudden symptoms will appear, and may not appear at all.
“It’s a very quiet disease,” said Dr. Rodrigo Neiva, chief of periodontology at Penn Dental Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
In the early stages, the disease is called gingivitis. Dentists can diagnose this condition using a special tool that measures the distance between the gums and teeth, and if it is large, this indicates the presence of the disease.
Gingivitis often occurs without notice, because it does not cause pain, but it can be diagnosed, according to Dr. Neva, if the patient suffers from bleeding teeth when brushing or flossing.
When gingivitis is left untreated, bacteria invade the mouth and destroy the tissues under the gums, causing advanced gum disease, a condition called periodontal disease.
“Patients may end up losing their teeth,” Dr. Niva said.
Once gingivitis progresses to periodontal disease, gums begin to recede, teeth appear longer, patients may experience increased sensitivity around the gums, chronic bad breath, and eventually, their teeth may begin to fall out.
Mouth, diabetes and Alzheimer’s.. What does gums do to other body parts?
Gum disease is linked to many other diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, and respiratory infections
And people who smoke or suffer from diabetes have an increased chance of developing gum disease, as well as taking some medications such as steroids and some epilepsy and cancer drugs, and genes also play a role in the emergence of the disease.
Paradoxically, according to Dr. Niva, people who rarely develop tooth decay are more likely than others to develop gum disease, because the bacteria that cause gum disease outperform the bacteria that cause caries, and inhibit them.
How to prevent
The report says oral hygiene is key to preventing gum disease, because people often get gingivitis because they don’t brush and floss enough.
Sometimes, only parts of the gums are affected, especially the gums around the back of the teeth, an area that the brush often does not reach well.
Regular brushing and flossing can help prevent gum disease, but once inflammation sets in, oral hygiene at home will not be enough, because bacteria may have started to build up under the gums. In this case, the patient will need specialized cleaning at the doctor, and possibly antibiotics.
Advanced gum disease can be incurable. However, treatments that slow or prevent further gum and bone loss may be recommended.
The report says that maintaining the health of your teeth is simple and requires only “brushing your teeth twice a day, flossing once a day, and cleaning your teeth at your dentist periodically,” according to Dr. Niva.
“The earlier we detect the disease, the more we can do,” the doctor said.
2023-07-11 17:29:36
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