Periodontal Management Therapy at Merrimack Smiles
Periodontal management therapy is a prescribed soft tissue management program designed to manage and maintain the stable condition of your dental health after being diagnosed with periodontal (gum) disease.
Periodontal disease is a bacterial infection affecting the gums, jawbone, and tissues that support your teeth, caused by plaque buildup. Depending on the stage of the disease and your unique needs, our doctors will prescribe a treatment plan to remove the affected tissue and stop the disease process.
After your periodontal treatment, routine periodontal management therapy is necessary to prevent the buildup of bacteria and maintain your dental and overall health.
How often do I need periodontal management therapy?
Our doctors typically recommend therapy every three to four months because the bacteria responsible for periodontal disease can resume destructive activity after 90 days.
What happens during my periodontal management therapy visits?
Medical History Review: We will review your current medications, health conditions, and allergies and discuss how they relate and affect your dental and overall health.
Discuss your concerns and questions: We want to know what is on your mind. Routine visits with our doctors and team provide an opportunity for you to regularly talk with our doctors about any concerns or questions you have about your dental health and the appearance of your smile.
Take vital signs: We take vital signs such as blood pressure, identifying and discussing with you any noted changes that may be a sign of a health concern.
Update X-rays: X-rays allow our doctors to evaluate the condition of your jawbone and tooth structures below the gumline.
Update Photographs: We capture images of your mouth, teeth, and gums to document their current state and monitor any changes over time.
Disease Screening: We examine your face, neck, lips, tongue, throat, and the soft and hard tissues inside your mouth for changes or unusual areas that may be a sign of a health concern, such as cancer.
Periodontal Evaluation: We examine your gums for signs of periodontal (gum) disease such as inflammation, bleeding, and bad breath.
Periodontal Charting: We measure the depth (pocketing) of where your gum tissue attaches to your tooth.
Periodontal management therapy: Using specialized tools we will professionally remove the build-up of bacteria from your teeth above the gumline, and in the deeper spaces under your gums that you cannot clean at home.
Oral Cavity Evaluation: We examine your teeth for signs of decay damage or other conditions that could negatively impact your dental health.
Doctors Evaluation: After reviewing the diagnostic information collected during this visit and contained in your historical records, and utilizing the photos and x-rays, our doctors will show and discuss their findings, ensuring there is time to have your questions satisfactorily answered.
Oral Care Recommendations: We review your home care routine and make recommendations that will help you continue to maintain a healthy mouth in between visits with our team.
What is the difference between periodontal management therapy and a routine dental cleaning?
The main difference lies in their purpose.
A routine dental cleaning is designed to be preventative dental care. Its purpose is to keep gum disease and tooth decay from developing in a healthy mouth. During a routine cleaning, a dental professional will clean your teeth above the gumline and in harder-to-reach areas, removing plaque, tartar, and stains before bacteria have the chance to cause damage.
Periodontal management therapy is a prescribed soft tissue management program designed to manage and maintain the stable condition of your dental health after being diagnosed with periodontal (gum) disease. Since periodontal disease is caused by bacteria that is forming in your mouth daily, there is no complete cure, but it can be effectively managed through regular therapy and diligent home care.
Why Choose Merrimack Smiles?
Our practice is built on a foundation of core values that include integrity, accountability, and a commitment to excellence. We believe in open communication, transparency, and treating every patient with dignity and respect. Empowering our patients through education, helping them understand their dental health and the options available to them ensures that our patients are informed and confident in the decisions they make about their care. We aspire to change the way our patients think about dentistry working to provide proactive preventative care, with the goal of eliminating unexpected worry and improved health, enhancing their everyday lives.
As the only B Corp certified dental office in Northern New England, we are dedicated to the health and betterment of our community at large. We are committed to conducting business as if people and place matter most, and through best practices in governance and sustainability creating positive impacts that reach far beyond our practice’s doors.
At Merrimack Smiles, we do things differently. Experience the difference. Come Smile with us.