Advanced Gum Disease Treatment for Barnet Patients

Seek professional help right away if you notice signs of periodontitis. It is more advanced than simple gingivitis. Signs include loose teeth or drift, persistent bad breath that won't improve with brushing, and painful swollen gums that bleed. Other clues are gum recession making teeth look longer, or abscesses on the gums. Many Barnet patients come to us when their gums are bleeding and changing their bite or smile. Don’t ignore these symptoms; early intervention gives the best chance to save your teeth.

Your first visit is a thorough 60 minute assessment. We measure pockets between teeth and gums and may take digital X rays to check bone levels. Then non surgical deep cleaning, or scaling and root planing, is done over 2 to 4 visits, each about 60 minutes, with local anaesthetic for comfort. We clean below the gum line to remove tartar and bacteria. After 8 to 12 weeks, we reevaluate how the gums have healed. For most patients this stabilizes the condition. A Barnet patient with deep pockets around molars showed real improvement after four sessions and did not need invasive treatment.

After deep cleaning you may have some gum tenderness and sensitivity for a few days. Long term success depends on proper home care. Use interdental brushes or floss daily and attend hygiene appointments every 3 to 4 months. This helps prevent the disease from reactivating. For example, a patient from Whetstone keeps her gums stable by sticking to a strict three monthly cleaning schedule for years. Red flags requiring attention: call during office hours Mon Wed Fri 9 to 5, Tue Thu 11 to 7 if you have severe or increasing pain, swelling, or signs of infection after treatment. For emergencies after hours call 111 or go to A&E.

The main alternative to treating advanced gum disease is no treatment at all, which inevitably leads to further bone loss and eventual tooth extraction. If teeth cannot be saved because of severe bone loss, the option becomes tooth replacement. Options here include dental implants or fixed bridges. These are effective but more invasive and costly than saving natural teeth. For the most severe cases that do not respond to initial therapy, we may discuss a referral to a specialist periodontist for surgical options. However, our focus is to achieve stability with the least invasive methods first.

To help you make an informed choice about your care whether with us or another Barnet area practice here are key questions to consider: what is the success rate for non surgical treatment in cases like mine, how often will I need maintenance after the initial treatment, what are the long term costs, what home care routine and products do you recommend, do you have experience treating severe periodontitis and can you show anonymised results, will I need a referral to a specialist.

As a private practice we do not offer NHS dental services. The cost of advanced gum disease treatment varies with severity and the number of appointments. A course of non surgical deep cleaning typically ranges from £600 to £1,200. This fee covers all deep cleaning sessions and the follow up appointment. We provide a detailed treatment plan with all costs outlined after your initial assessment. We accept private plans including Max Bupa, Denplan, and Cigna which may cover part of your treatment.