How Your Functional Dentist in Los Angeles Treats Gum Infection
For many patients, it is hard to determine if they are experiencing a gum infection. You may notice tenderness when brushing, but dismiss it until you experience more pain or bleeding while brushing. Fortunately, your functional dentist in Los Angeles offers a variety of treatments for gum infections.
Treatments for Gum Infection
Some of the symptoms of gum infections can include: swelling and bleeding gums, bad breath that does not go away, receding gums, puss secreting from gums, loose teeth and a change in your bite.
There are several treatment options depending on the severity of the gum infection:
- Antibiotics (pills or shot) are often used to treat gum infections, just like they are used to treat other infections in the body. A dentist will numb your gum, and then give an antibiotic shot directly into the gum.
- A dentist may do an in-depth cleaning between your gums and teeth where infections hide.
- A dentist may also do scaling — scraping tartar off above and below your gum line — and root planing — smoothing the rough surfaces of the roots of your teeth – to help your gums reattach to your teeth.
- For serious cases of infection, gum tissue may need to be surgically removed in what is called a gingivectomy.
- An oral surgeon may need to do flap surgery, which is when gums are pulled back to remove tartar from deep pockets. A few weeks after surgery, the gums should fit tightly around the teeth.
- Sometimes bone grafting is done to treat bone infections. This is a surgical procedure that places new or synthetic bone in the area. A soft tissue graft may also be done. This uses gum tissue from the root of the mouth to cover exposed tooth roots.
Schedule Your Appointment
If you think you may be experiencing symptoms of gum infection, please contact your functional dentist in Los Angeles, CA to schedule your appointment.