Periodontal disease

[Laurence]

Hi

I have been told by my new dentist that I suffer from periodontal disease and I have been referred to a periodontist for a gum assessment and gum treatment later next month.

I do have four really wobbly teeth and a couple of slightly loose teeth but the rest of my teeth are ok as far as I can tell. Although I appreciate that the gum specialist might say that the condition of my remaining teeth is worst than I thought.

I would like to know if I could instead of having treatment for gum disease, simply have all my loose teeth removed and implants placed. That way, I would have firm implants that I could eat with and not have constant pain when I eat food on my loose teeth. Please advise.

[Dr Vahid Motahar]

Hi,

Thank you for your question.

If one suffers from periodontal disease and is considering of having implants to replace the loose teeth, the periodontal disease has to be treated first and make sure that the periodontist is happy with the gum disease to have stabilised. This is because periodontal disease is the loss of bone support around the root of the teeth and hence the teeth becoming wobbly. If this condition does not come under control and is not treated effectively first, then the same can happen to the implant teeth. Thus losing the bone around the implant and making it loose also. If implant becomes even very lightly loose then it has to be removed as it is not effective anymore. To avoid this expensive failure one must ensure the gum disease is well controlled and remains under control even after the implant placement.