Patient Information |

Do you know how healthy your gums are?
Do you know the proper way to care for your teeth and gums?
Do you have periodontal disease?
Do you know the symptoms?
Did you know that there is rarely any pain associated with gum disease?
Did you know that 90% of adults have some form of periodontal disease?

You can access the Patient Information and Health History Form here.

Check the health of your gums by asking yourself the following questions:

Are your gums swollen?
Do your gums bleed when you are brushing, or when you use a toothpick or other cleaning device?
Have your gums shrunk back or receded, so that your teeth appear lengthened?
Are you aware of any loosening of your teeth?
Do you see any yellowish, pus-like fluid at the gum line when you massage your gums?
Have your teeth drifted or changed position, and have any gaps appeared between them?
Have your parents or siblings lost teeth prematurely due to tooth loosening?

To schedule an appointment for a consultation regarding your periodontal or implant needs, call or email our office.

If you have answered one or more of these questions with ‘yes’, you should contact your dental practice for a periodontal assessment.

Don’t forget that regular check-up appointments with your dentist (at least twice yearly) will enable your dentist to check your periodontal health.

Why is periodontology important?
In many ways, the mouth can be seen as a mirror of the general condition of your body. In particular, our periodontal status can often tell us more than simply what is happening locally in our gums. Although periodontitis is always triggered by plaque accumulation on the teeth, diseases affecting the rest of the body, known as systemic diseases, can weaken the supporting structures of the teeth.

Also, some serious disorders are known to show themselves in the mouth before they are evident in any other part of the body. Therefore, it is sometimes the case that a trained periodontist is the first person to detect the signs of a general disease, such as diabetes or blood disorders, when examining a patient’s mouth. Because of this association with general health and overlap with other medical disciplines, periodontology can rightly be regarded as a ‘holistic’ form of dentistry.