Dental services
Dentale scale | Paradontitis
Receding gums, gingival atrophy, paradontitis, paradontosis
- they all centre around the same evil: dental scale. The precursor of dental scale is plaque, i.e. the bacterium rich deposit accumulating on the teeth due to bad oral hygiene.
However, it is true that periodontal diseases may also form without the presence of dental scale or plaque.
Nowadays paradontosis (the disease of the periodontium) is a widespread disease.
If the deposit that slowly transforms into dental scale from the thick plaque is not removed in time then it becomes bigger and thicker and, in a more serious case, the bacteria living and multiplying in it can cause the inflammation of the gums (i.e. gingivitis, which is part of paradontosis), attack the bone holding and supporting the teeth and the teeth loosen up and fall out as a result. A typical example is the loosening and, possibly, loss of the lower incisors.
The first symptom of the problem is gingival haemorrhage...
...which is not painful and, therefore, often ignored. However, paradontosis can be prevented with some extra care - with proper oral hygiene, using preventive toothpastes and mouth washes, as well as frequent removal of the dental scale (depuration).
Dental scale
Positioned above and under the gums, dental scale is a yellowish and sometimes greyish-brownish deposit; the minerals found in the saliva (inorganic calcium and phosphate crystals) get built up in the scale and become hard. Due to the crystal structure, the surface is rough, which makes it suitable for bacteria to attach, causing chronic inflammation.
Dental scale above the gumline is visible for the naked eye but it accumulates in greatest volume opposite the exit holes of the major salivary glands: on the inner surface of the lower frontal teeth and the outside surface of the upper morals.
Dental scale under the gumline is not visible for the naked eye as it is positioned in the so-called pouches under the gum edges, along the root surface of the teeth. This dental scale is denser and harder, sticking to the tooth surface much stronger; they can be felt and removed only using special dental instruments.
Dental scale cannot be removed at home but only in the dental surgery...
...using the purpose-designed, high-frequency device (ultrasound depurator). The treatment is almost completely painless, which is partly due to the fact that the device vibrates at a very high frequency and vaporises cooling water during operation. The professional ultrasound depuration is made complete by sandblast (air-flow) polishing, as a result of which even the tiniest dental scale and discoloration can be removed from the most hidden locations - what is more, the glassy surface makes it more difficult for plaque to deposit on the teeth later on.
Inflammation of the gums (gingivitis)...
...means that the gums (gingiva) becomes red, swells and/or starts bleeding and slightly recedes. This may develop into paradontosis, or the disease of the periodontium. In this case the toothbrush itself does not help. Slight gingivitis is curable with proper oral hygiene and the appropriate use of the toothbrush but if the paradontosis has developed, dental treatment is unavoidable.
Tooth-brushing...
...is generally applied mechanically, without paying much attention, i.e. for a short time and less carefully than necessary. We shorten the three minutes prescribed by dentists and usually our technique is not as thorough as we once learnt it. The use of floss is also very important as without it the plaque hiding between the teeth, which is inaccessible for the toothbrush, as well as the bacteria accumulating in the plaque can attack the sensitive gums, resulting in paradontosis, the disease of the periodontium.
Smoking also increases the risk of paradontosis.
Studies reveal that regular smoking doubles and in some cases even sextuples the possibility of paradontosis to develop. If the process is not stopped in time, the disease becomes more and more serious: it may spread onto the bone holding the teeth, which also starts receding and the teeth may loosen up. Our teeth are originally so strong that they can bear a load of 80 kilograms but, as a result of chronic gingivitis, they may start falling out without any physical impact.
