Periodontitis in Italy is one of the leading causes of tooth loss in adults (edentulism). It is mainly triggered by bacterial plaque building up on the tooth surfaces: if this is not removed, in a susceptible person it sets off an inflammatory process that causes the gum and bone to detach from the tooth root.
It is a process of gradual destruction affecting the deep supporting tissues of the tooth (alveolar bone, periodontal ligament and root cementum). It is slow and, up to a certain stage, painless, so it is often neglected.
It should be stressed that periodontitis is associated with serious systemic diseases, so it is not just a problem of the mouth: it also has implications for a person’s general health.
Given the chronic nature of this inflammatory disease, which cannot be cured once and for all but can be stabilised, treatment is divided into several phases.
To keep things simple, we can speak of active therapy, which aims to halt periodontitis and may be non-surgical or surgical depending on how severe the disease is, and of supportive or maintenance therapy, which aims to prevent relapse and maintain the stability achieved over time.
Supportive therapy, tailored to each patient, includes an essential yearly monitoring appointment (the periodontal reassessment visit); in particularly severe and complex cases, more frequent reassessment visits may be recommended.
During reassessment visits, the patient’s local and/or systemic risk factors and the condition of their periodontal tissues are examined again.
It is important to stress that the periodontal reassessment visit should not be confused with professional dental cleaning sessions, which patients need to attend regularly to remove bacterial plaque and tartar and keep their clinical situation stable.
Patients who do not regularly attend their periodontal reassessment visit, and so effectively leave the direct care of their periodontist, are more exposed to the risk of the disease returning. A relapse can compromise the health of the periodontal tissues, undo the results previously achieved and expose the patient to a decline in both their oral and their general health.
Credits: Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash
