Teeth

[irhmrh]

Ok, has anyone ever have gingivitis, i show all the signs but im scared out of my mind...i dont have Dental insurence but im gona get the work done...

if you have had it, what did you do?
how was the treatment?
did the treatment work?
Was it costly?
Pain?

[pontiacdriver]

Gingivitis is really not as horrible as it sounds, and the treatment for it is not too bad. Basically, the dentist has to do a lot of scrapping around your teeth to get rid of plaque build up, and a regular office visit should cover gingivitis treatment unless your tooth decay is in an advanced stage. Generally, once the dentist scraps around your teeth and removes all of the plaque and tartar build up, then things work out very well and the gum disease tends not to retun as long as you maintain good oral hygiene; gingivitis is a totally reversible condition as long as it has not advanced to a more severe form of periodontal disease. It can be somewhat uncomfortable when the dentist removes the plaque and tartar, but it really is not too bad and is bearable. As for the ultimate cost of such treatment, everything depends upon individual dentists and his/her rate scale.

What you do in the short term is to make sure that you brush and floss at least twice per day to minimize any further build up of contaminents. Using a good mouthwash such as Listerine also goes a long way to alleviating oral problems. The following link from the ADA has good information on how to maintain your teeth: http://www.ada.org/public/topics/cleaning.asp

As for your lack of dental insurance there are still some options open to you. You can always check with your local city, township, County, or State health departments to see if they offer free or discounted dental care in your area. Also, if there are dental schools in your area, then many of them have clinics staffed by students that offer free or discounted care. Also, you can use the following tool from the ADA to find a local dental association to see if they know of any dentists who might offer free or reduced priced care: http://www.ada.org/ada/organizations/local.asp

[Nihilus]

Brush your teeth at least twice a day.

[theOperaGhost]

Moved from P101 to VT General Hospital. Three day redirect.

[Kaleidoscope Eyes]

And floss! I can't believe no one mentioned that. I don't quite have gingivitis myself, but my gums were fairly irritated last time I went in to the dentist. He said that, especially with teenagers, the most common cause of gum disease and tartar buildup is not flossing regularly. If you don't floss every time you brush your teeth, you need to start. Brushing does not get all of the plaque out, especially between your teeth (as you'll notice when you're able to reach it with the floss), so naturally you have to do more than just brush if you want to keep your mouth in its best shape. Your gums may bleed a bit for a little while, which does not have to mean that you do have gingivitis, just that you're not used to flossing. The bleeding should go away as long as you keep flossing regularly.

Also, what kind of toothbrush are you using? Most people don't look at the little label that tells you how stiff the bristles are when they buy a toothbrush, and those who do often grab "medium". You should actually buy one with soft bristles. The ones marked "medium" or anything else are too stiff. My mom worked in a dental office for many years, and I spent much of my after-school hours as a kid sitting in the staff lounge of that office doing my homework, so I know a lot about teeth. I dont know why they sell bristles other than "soft" and "extra-soft", but you don't need em. No one really does. Using a softer brush may be easier on your gums, which may help with any pain you're feeling while brushing, and if your gum irritation is being caused by annoying bristles, it could help a bit with that, too.