Gum disease can affect anyone, and odds are it is going to affect you at some point in your life.
According to the American Dental Hygienists Association, 80 percent of Americans have gum disease, and most of us don’t realize we have it. Hygienists would know, they are the people who perform your cleanings when you visit Edgewood Dental Care and other dentist offices.

If left untreated, gum disease can cause pain, tooth decay, and tooth loss. Fortunately, we can treat your gum disease (also known as periodontal disease) with a number of  techniques, including LANAP therapy.

What Is LANAP?
If you’ve never heard of LANAP therapy that may be a good thing. It probably means you didn’t need it to treat advanced gum disease. The short explanation is that LANAP is a revolutionary development in the treatment of periodontal disease.

LANAP stands for laser-assisted new attachment procedure. During LANAP therapy, we start by checking your gums for pocket formations. These pockets form below the gumline closer to the roots of your teeth.
We use a laser to remove the tissue that conceals the pocket. This allows us easier access to clean out the bacteria, plaque, and tartar that caused your periodontal disease.

Then, we use the laser again to close the gum tissue. Your gums are then pressed back against your tooth. These means the infected tissue has been removed, and you won’t have any pockets remaining for bacteria to start a new infection.

More Advanced Treatment For Your Gums
Many dental practices still use a scalpel to treat advanced gum disease.

This means just what you might think. They have to cut into your gums, and they cut out the diseased and infected tissue. This can cause bleeding. This can be painful, and it will take some time to recover from this kind of treatment.

You will be happy to know that our own Dr. McMahon has been certified to use LANAP to treat you here at the Edgewood Dental Care office. No scalpels required!

LANAP causes less pain than a scalpel, and it greatly reduces bleeding during your gum disease treatment. This also speeds up your recovery when your treatment is finished.

Not only will your gum disease be treated with the most advanced techniques, you know you are being treated by someone who has the expertise to do it right if you come to Edgewood Dental Care.

A Cleaner, Less Painful Option
We certainly hope you will never need treatment for periodontitis, an advanced form of gum disease, but if you do, then you should feel confident about the treatment you will receive. As we mentioned, LANAP therapy has several advantages over other methods for treating gum disease.

We can’t say it will be completely pain-free in every case. We are confident that it will greatly reduce any pain you might experience, especially when compared to older techniques using a scalpel.

Think about it, would you rather have a dentist cut into your gums and cut out your infected tissue, or would your prefer to have that tissue removed with a laser?

If we were to cut into your gums, we may have to stitch them closed. Those stitches could create opportunities for new pockets to form inside your gums. By comparison, LANAP therapy leaves your gums sealed without the need for stitches. Your gums can be pressed directly next to your teeth, reducing your risk for new pocket formation.

And as we mentioned above, your recovery time will be reduced as a result of LANAP.

Don’t Delay If You Need Treatment
As we mentioned above, we hope you never need treatment for advanced gum disease. You can and should be taking preventive steps to keep your gums healthy.

You should be brushing your teeth twice every day, flossing daily, and visiting Edgewood Dental Care for routine dental cleanings. During your visits, we will remove any bacteria, plaque, or tartar that you may have missed during your at-home care.

We also will examine your mouth. We’ll look for signs of gum disease. If we see it early, we can often reverse the effects before you need one of our more advanced treatments.

You owe it to yourself to keep your gums healthy. If you notice that you may have signs of gum disease such as sore gums that bleed easily, contact our office to make an appointment. The earlier you start your gum disease treatment, the more effective it will be.

If you haven’t scheduled your next cleaning, now is the time to do so. If you do have gum disease, you can feel confident that Edgewood Dental Care can provide effective treatment for you.

To make an appointment, fill out our online form or call 859-474-7830.