Additional Periodontal Treatments - Arcadia, CA
A Healthy Smile Begins with Restoring Healthy Gums
Reverse Gum Disease to Protect Your Oral and Whole Body Health
Healthy gum tissue supports your teeth and jawbone while creating a barrier against bacteria. Also known as periodontal disease, gum disease is caused by plaque, the sticky film of bacteria constantly forming on your teeth. When plaque is left to accumulate on your teeth, it hardens into tartar. It releases bacterial toxins that irritate gum tissue, causing an active gum infection and eventually advanced gum disease called periodontitis. While gum disease is the leading cause of tooth loss in adults, it may produce little to no symptoms in the early stages. But when gum disease progresses to periodontitis, oral bacteria can infiltrate your bloodstream, leading to systemic infections and more serious repercussions to your whole body’s health.
Although poor oral hygiene is the number one cause of gum disease, other factors can increase your susceptibility, including smoking or chewing tobacco, genetics, crooked teeth, pregnancy, diabetes, and specific medications (e.g., steroids, certain types of anti-epilepsy drugs, cancer therapy drugs, select calcium channel blockers, and some oral contraceptives). If you’re experiencing any signs of gum disease, Arcadia Perio is the right choice to stop inflammation and prevent the potentially devastating consequences of a gum infection. Our skilled periodontist offers a wide spectrum of healing gum disease treatment in Arcadia, CA, targeted at restoring health to the “unsung hero” of your mouth—your gums!
Warning Signs of Gum Disease
- Gums that bleed easily during oral hygiene
- Red, swollen, or tender gums
- Gums that have pulled away from your teeth
- Chronic bad breath or taste in your mouth
- Loose or separating permanent teeth
- Change in the way your teeth come together when you bite
- Altered fit of partial dentures
Treat Your Gums to Professional Care from Our Perio Expert
As a board-certified periodontist, Dr. Andrew Peterson underwent advanced training after dental school and has demonstrated a personal and professional commitment to elevate periodontal care through ongoing education.
At Arcadia Perio, we offer a full range of periodontal services designed to restore the health of your smile foundation, from gingivitis treatment to soft tissue grafts to cover exposed tooth roots caused by gum recession. Furthermore, Dr. Peterson is certified as a clinician and teacher in LANAP® (Laser-Assisted New Attachment Procedure), an FDA-cleared, minimally invasive laser gum disease treatment that effectively reverses moderate to severe periodontal disease.
Our Periodontal Treatments
Functional crown lengthening may be necessary to expose more of your tooth structure to place restorations, such as dental crowns and bridges.
Aesthetic crown lengthening involves adjusting gum tissue and bone around a tooth to restore a balanced gum-to-tooth ratio. For example, if excessive gum tissue shows when you smile, crown lengthening can improve the appearance of a gummy smile.
Trauma and periodontal disease can sometimes lead to gum recession, which results in exposed tooth roots, sensitivity, an increased risk of bacteria and decay, and an unattractive gumline. Dr. Peterson commonly performs gum grafts in Arcadia, CA, to recontour gumlines, restore a more natural appearance to teeth, and protect them from cold/heat sensitivity and decay.
With the most common type of gum graft, a connective tissue graft, Dr. Peterson carefully takes donor tissue from the roof of your mouth and sutures it onto the area of recession. The graft requires several weeks of healing before becoming a permanent part of your mouth.
This two-part procedure is typically the first-line treatment for gum disease. During scaling, an ultrasonic scaler removes plaque and tartar from tooth surfaces. An irrigation process delivers an antimicrobial agent below the gumline along the tooth roots, helping to reduce bacteria.
Root planing is performed to remove unwanted microorganisms, toxins, and tartar, followed by smoothing the tooth root surfaces to promote healing and help prevent bacteria from accumulating in the future.
A frenectomy is a simple surgical procedure that removes or alters one of the two main oral frenula (connective tissues) for functional reasons, either with a scalpel or laser. The lingual frenum is the band of tissue beneath your tongue, while the labial frenum is the tissue connecting the upper lip to your gums.
Also known as tongue tie surgery, a lingual frenum that is too tight or restrictive impedes breastfeeding in infants and may lead to speech difficulties in older children and adults. In some cases, a tight labial frenum can cause a gap between the upper front teeth, so removing it can either eliminate the need for orthodontic treatment or make braces more effective at closing the gap.
A gingivectomy is performed to remove unhealthy gum tissue and periodontal pockets impacted by gum disease or for cosmetic reasons to remove excessive gingival tissue that results in a gummy smile. With a scalpel, small areas of gum tissue are removed through soft tissue incision. If a laser is used to perform a gingivectomy, the highly focused laser beam gently targets and vaporizes excess gum tissue, minimizing trauma surrounding healthy gums.
LANAP is the only laser gum disease treatment that is FDA-cleared for true regeneration of gum and bone, which features a laser fiber the width of three human hairs. The innovative PerioLase® MVP-7™ laser enables Dr. Peterson to regrow tissues and bone lost to gum disease without impacting healthy tissue. Compared to traditional osseous surgery, the LANAP protocol is more comfortable, decreases post-op sensitivity and gum recession, and lessens downtime after treatment.
Peri-implantitis is often caused by poor oral hygiene. It results in tartar buildup around the implant and the growth of the same bad bacteria that leads to gum disease. LAPIP (Laser Assisted Peri-Implantitis Procedure) is a gentler solution for treating peri-implantitis that is effective at rescuing failing dental implants.
In the capable hands of Dr. Peterson, LAPIP in Arcadia, CA, vaporizes bacteria, diseased tissue, and titanium contaminants in soft tissue while providing a secure enclosure to protect the area from getting re-infected. LAPIP is an evidence-based, proven protocol that promotes bone and tissue regeneration without requiring invasive revision surgery.
Osseous surgery is a pocket-reduction procedure in which we gently reshape the underlying bone damaged by gum disease. By trimming away irregular bone surfaces and smoothing out defects, we eliminate deep pockets where bacteria love to hide. This creates a healthier foundation for your gums to reattach snugly to your teeth, reducing inflammation and preventing future bone loss.
