Gum health essential for oral health

We often only become aware of gum disease when we have continued bad breath or bleeding gums. Although both of these symptoms indicate gum disease, it’s often ignored, especially in the beginning stages, as it’s painless. Gum disease, apart from undermining the health of your teeth, has now also been linked as a contributing factor for heart and lung disease, so it’s very important to prioritise your 6 month check-ups with your dentist in Mackay.

Mackay dentist; regular checks to prevent gum disease

Sore, reddened or bleeding gums can be indicators of gum infection which can develop into gum disease such as gingivitis and periodontitis. By attending your appointments for check-ups and cleaning at Walkerston Dental in Walkerston Superclinic, we can get to the root of the issue before it develops into gum disease.

Gingivitis and periodontitis are both gum diseases that can damage your oral health long term, leading to more expensive reparative dental work.

Gingivitis is a mild, curable gum disease, often indicated by bleeding gums and persistent bad breath. If left untreated it can develop into periodontitis, a more chronic, incurable condition which can eventually attack your jawbone, undermining its integrity and leading to tooth loss.

During your 6-monthly check, both of these infections can be diagnosed and treated effectively.

Sore gums can also be an indicator of tartar build up which is irritating your gums. This will be removed during your clean and polish appointment.

Ultrasonic scalers to the rescue

Sticky bacteria builds up on our teeth throughout the day, known as plaque, it is removed during our regular brushing and flossing routine. However, since all the surfaces of our teeth are hard to reach, we often miss plaque build-up, that will then harden into tartar. Tartar is a hard substance that builds up around the teeth, irritating the gums. Only a dental professional can remove tartar during a descaling clean and polish.

At Walkerston Dental we use only ultrasonic scalers during our clean and polish appointments. It gets into all the spaces between the teeth and deeply cleans away any build up. 6 month check-ups and clean appointments with your dentist in Mackay results in good oral and general health.