He will gently examine all the gum crevices for hidden areas of disease.
We have placed a dental measuring instrument gently to the bottom of the crevice to measure how deep it is. The attachment of the gum limits how far the instrument can go.
- Head and Neck Exam - looking for enlarged lymph nodes in neck and jaws, Thyroid enlargement, TMJ movement, deviation of the lower jaw on opening, noise in the joints, muscle status, and tenderness
- Oral cancer screening, oral and throat soft tissue changes
- Bite evaluation - how teeth relate to each other in the jaw and opposing jaw
- Teeth - for mobility, wear, craze lines, fractures of teeth and restoration (fillings), fremitus (vibration of teeth when tapped together), cavities, spaces between teeth, places where food get caught when eating
- Amount and extent of plaque and calculus(tartar)
- Quality and condition of gums and supporting bone
- X-rays are diagnostic for cavities, tooth root length and anatomy, lesions of the bone due to periodontal disease, root canal problems, cysts, or other anomalies that alter the bone.
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STAGE ONE OF THE DISEASE
A plaque has caused inflammation: the gum is red and swollen.
Inflammation damages the periodontal fibers that hold the gum tight against the tooth. This allows plaque to enter deeper into the gum crevice, where it can do even more damage.
Proper treatment and good home care usually stop the disease completely at this earliest stage. The gum restores itself to full health, with no permanent damage.
A crevice more than 3 mm. deep is considered a gum pocket.
Gum pockets are bad because they are hard to keep clean. They are impossible to keep clean once some calculus has been informed within them.
The toxins (poisons) from the plaque in this 4-millimeter-deep pocket have also destroyed some adjacent bone.
Treatment, plus good home care, will slow down or stop the progress of the disease at this stage. But it is unlikely that the gum and bone can be completely restored to the way they are before the disease starts.
Periodontitis Progresses; Bone Loss, Gum Recession, Roots Exposed, Spaces Between Teeth and Teeth can Shift.
Probe measuring 8 1/2 mm pocket
Bone Loss May Only Be Detected by Periodontal Examination
Call us at (401) 273-6161 or schedule an appointment with our experienced dentist at our dental office in Providence, RI. We'll be happy to guide you further.
CALL US:((401) 273-6161 REQUEST APPOINTMENT