Does periodontitis require root canal treatment?

Written by Li Bao Hua
Dentistry
Updated on September 08, 2024
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Periodontitis is an inflammation of the tooth-supporting tissues caused by the lack of timely brushing and rinsing after eating, where food residues or soft plaque become calculus under the calcification of saliva. This condition requires tooth cleaning, which is a procedure performed around the teeth, and does not require root canal treatment. If periodontitis progresses further and bacteria from the periodontal pocket reach the root tip, it can cause inflammation around the tooth including the root tip. This may lead to a pathological condition of the dental nerve. If the root tip inflammation is caused by the retrograde action of periodontitis, root canal treatment is necessary because it affects the dental nerve. If there is no concurrent inflammation of the dental nerve, direct periodontal treatment can be performed. However, if retrograde root tip inflammation has occurred, then root canal treatment of the tooth is required.

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Written by Li Bao Hua
Dentistry
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Do you need to get your teeth cleaned for periodontitis?

Periodontitis generally develops from gingivitis and is caused by irritation from dental calculus, soft deposits or dental plaque around the gums, leading to bleeding gums or bleeding when eating, as well as the further infection by bacteria causing swollen, suppurating gums and the formation of periodontal pockets. Severe cases may involve the loss of alveolar bone. Therefore, the basic treatment for periodontitis is dental cleaning, which involves removing irritants around the teeth, followed by rinsing and medicating to improve the inflammatory condition. If symptoms do not improve effectively after basic dental cleaning treatment, further treatments such as subgingival scaling to remove calculus under the gums or root planing may be necessary. If the absorption of the alveolar bone is severe, alveolar bone grafting may also be considered.

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What to do after tooth extraction due to periodontitis?

After tooth extraction due to periodontitis, it is necessary to promptly fit a dental prosthesis. Periodontitis generally involves significant loss of the alveolar bone, leading to tooth mobility and even loss. After extracting a tooth due to periodontitis, it is essential first to observe for three months. After three months, once the absorption of the alveolar bone stabilizes, dental prosthesis can be performed. Temporary restorative measures, such as using temporary teeth, are also an option during this period. Temporary teeth generally require fitting with a permanent prosthesis after three months, at which point the temporary teeth are discarded. After fitting a permanent prosthesis, it is important to avoid hard foods since the jawbone conditions are not ideal due to periodontitis, and chewing hard objects could accelerate the absorption of the alveolar bone. Therefore, after tooth extraction due to periodontitis, temporary teeth can be worn for three months before permanent prosthetic treatment is carried out.

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Is periodontitis serious?

Periodontitis is a development of gingivitis. To determine the severity of periodontitis, an X-ray of the teeth is required to check for pathological bone resorption in the alveolar bone. If the symptoms are limited to the gingival tissue, such as simple gingival bleeding, brushing bleeding, gingival swelling, or pus discharge, it can be managed by dental cleaning or ultrasonic scaling, followed by medicated irrigation around the gums to improve the inflammation. If subgingival calculus is present, it might also be addressed with scaling or root planing to remove the calculus. If there is significant alveolar bone resorption due to severe periodontitis, the condition is serious and may require guided bone regeneration surgery. In severe cases, tooth extraction may be necessary.

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How to deal with loosening of the front teeth due to periodontitis?

For periodontitis with loosening of the front teeth, an X-ray of the teeth is needed to assess the severity of the periodontitis. If the loosening of the front teeth is simply due to absorption of the alveolar bone, this can be addressed through basic periodontal treatment, which includes teeth cleaning to remove tartar, dental plaque, and other local irritants, followed by irrigation around the gums, medication application, or guided bone regeneration to improve the looseness of the teeth. However, if the periodontitis is accompanied by severe alveolar bone loss, tooth extraction may be necessary.

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What department should I go to for periodontitis?

Patients with periodontitis should seek treatment in the periodontal department. If there is no periodontal department available, they can visit the department of oral medicine, or the department of stomatology or otolaryngology. Periodontitis is an inflammation of the periodontal support tissues, including gingivitis and periodontitis, with gingivitis being the early stage of periodontitis. It mainly occurs due to not brushing or rinsing promptly after eating, leading to the accumulation of food residues around the teeth. This condition requires timely teeth cleaning to remove these residues, otherwise, it could cause bleeding during brushing or eating and may further develop into periodontal pockets, leading to the appearance of periodontitis. Periodontitis might also involve the loss of alveolar bone support tissues, which requires timely dental cleaning followed by medication or a guided bone regeneration procedure.