Periodontist Clayton, MO
Periodontist in Clayton, MO. Periodontal disease, a serious gum infection, often starts as gingivitis, a moderate gum condition caused by plaque buildup. John Martin & Associates are committed to helping patients with various tooth and gum problems. Contact our offices today or call (314) 739-1222 for Maryland Heights or (573) 764-2425 for Gerald to schedule an appointment.
What Does a Clayton, MO, Periodontist Do?
A periodontist is a dental specialist focused on diagnosing, preventing, and treating periodontal disease. Their expertise includes maintaining dental implants, performing soft tissue and bone grafts, facilitating tissue regeneration, repairing crowns, and conducting gum grafting procedures.
John Martin & Associates has the capabilities for:
- Periodontal Disease Treatment
- Root Canal Therapy
- Oral Cancer Screenings
- Endodontic Therapy
- Dental Bonding
- Chipped Tooth Repair
- Cosmetic Dentistry
As an all-in-one family dentist, our St. Louis-based periodontists help prevent painful and even life-threatening oral diseases in Clayton, MO. Contact our team today for more information.
To avoid periodontitis, it's important to brush and floss regularly, avoid smoking, and visit your dentist routinely.
Additional services we provide Clayton, MO, patients include:
- Gum Disease Treatment
- Root Canal
- Teeth Implants
- Pediatric Dentist
- Cosmetic Dentistry Services
- Severe Tooth Pain
- Crowded Teeth
- All on 4 Dental Implants
- Chipped Tooth Repair
- Best Dentist Near Me
When Should You See a Periodontist?
Brushing your teeth twice a day, flossing daily, and visiting a dentist twice a year can help prevent gum disease, but some patients are more susceptible to certain oral health conditions.
Periodontitis is typically detected during standard dentist appointments. During a dental examination, your dentist will use a "probe," which is a tiny ruler, to measure the depth of your teeth's pockets, search for bone loss or damage, and look for other signs of gum disease, oral cancer, and other conditions.
If you have noticed any of the following symptoms, you could have periodontitis and require immediate treatment from a Clayton Periodontist:
- Swollen, tender, or bleeding gums - when periodontal bacteria develops, it can lead to extreme gum sensitivity, bleeding gums, and spacing between teeth
- Abnormal spaces between teeth - plaque buildup and calculus can cause a person's gums to recede, tooth loss, and, over time, erode the jaw bone
- Chronic tooth pain - periodontal bacteria can destroy a person's gums and cause deep and painful pockets that can become filled with pus and abscess
Oral bacterial infections, such as perodontitis, are preventable with biannual visits to the visit, brushing twice a day, and glossing, but if you do contract periodontitis, it's important to remember that it isn't permanent and can be healed with aggressive periodontal disease treatment.
Periodontal Disease Treatment in Clayton
There are several stages of gum disease; gingivitis and slight, moderate, and advanced periodontitis. Each level of gum disease has its own challenges and therefore, requires specialized treatment.
If your Clayton Periodontist thinks that you might have periodontitis, you might need one of the following Clayton gum disease treatments:
- Scaling, or, tartar and buildup removal, which is performed using a dental scaler to scratch buildup from the surface of each individual tooth and between the gums
- Root planing, commonly known as "deep cleaning," is perfomed using a dental scaler to smooth down the roots of teeth to prevent infection. Root planing also helps teeth that might have loosened reattach to gums
- Applying topical antibiotics to remove harmful bacteria from between a patient's teeth, inside deep pockets, and under the gum line
- Flap surgery involves making a small incision in the gum, lifting it back, and performing deep scaling and root planing
- Soft tissue grafting restores soft tissue damaged by periodontal disease
- Bone grafting, which is used during advanced periodontal disease treatment, involves using bone from non-infected areas to help aid natural regrowth of bone and prevent future bone damage
- Guided tissue regeneration is performed using a thin, but malleable, dental fabric, and placing it between the infected tooth and existing bone to limit infection and aid in regrowth of natural bone that was destroyed by periodontitis
- Tissue-stimulating proteins are a special gel that is applied to a diseased tooth root to prevent deeper infection and stimulate natural growth of bone and tissue
After your periodontist provides in-office treatment, at-home prevention of periodontal disease typically involves brushing twice daily, flossing every morning and night or after every snack and meal, using fluoride mouth rinses to prevent infection, and a water pick to clean gums.
Clayton Periodontist
If you think that you could have periodontitis or some form of gum disease, you need to seek treatment from an experienced periodontist right away. Early detection of gingivitis can prevent severe oral health damage such as tooth loss, gum decay, and bone destruction.
Dr. John Martin and Dr. Tyler Musto have a combined total of over 35 years of experienced in the St. Louis dental industry. Our goal at Martin Dental & Associates is to get your oral health in optimal shape, prevent future tooth, gum, or other oral health conditions, and make sure that you are satisfied with our Clayton dental services every time you visit our office.
If you are looking for a periodontist in Clayton, call (314) 739-1222 (Maryland Heights), (573) 764-2425 (Gerald), or contact Martin Dental & Associates today to schedule an appointment.
Martin Dental & Associates serves residents in the following cities in the Greater St. Louis Area: