I Was Told I Need a Deep Cleaning, Now What?
I Was Told I Need a Deep Cleaning, Now What?
During your first visit at a dental office, your dentist or hygienist will use something called a periodontal probe to measure how deep the pockets are around each tooth. Pockets are not a bad thing in themselves, as healthy teeth usually have about 3 millimeters of pocket depth or less. However, deeper pockets are usually an indicator of periodontal [perry-oh-DON-tal] disease, and the deeper the pocket depth, the more progressed the disease is. The deeper pockets give bacteria more room to grow and cause serious damage to gums and bone, which can lead to teeth growing loose over time. Very deep pockets are a sign of advanced periodontal disease.
Another tool that providers use to diagnose periodontal disease are x-rays. The images produced show the teeth, as well as the bones supporting them. Your dentist is able to see bone loss, determine the severity of the disease, and get a treatment plan together that works for you and your specific needs. While all dentists are trained on how to detect, treat and monitor gum diseases, they may still refer you out to a gum specialist, called a periodontist [perry-oh-DON-tist].
If it is determined that the treatment can be done, the first step is usually scaling and root planing. Scaling is when the dentist or hygienist removes plaque and tartar all the way down to the bottom of each pocket. Root planing follows the scaling. This is when the root surfaces of your teeth are scaled, or “planed”, to allow gum tissue to reattach to your teeth. During this process, you will be pain-free, due to the use of numbing agents, in the forms of creams and injections.
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