Gingivitis - when the gums hurt. What kind of disease is it?

Symptoms and cure of gingivitis. Why do gums hurt?

Gingivitis is an inflammatory process inside the gum. The symptoms are gingival hemorrhage, edema, reddening, and the gum hurts. Gingivitis is a frequent disease and can appear in 3 forms - recurrent, chronic, and acute.

Where does gingivitis come from?

In most cases gingivitis is the result of not following the simplest rules of mouth cavity hygiene. Consequently a plaque is being formed. The plaque is a colony of pathogenic microorganisms connected with the teeth enamel. Another factors that can cause gingivitis are dental calculus (or the so-called calcifying plaque), bite defects, food debris, irregularly filled teeth, mouth breath.

Pregnant women and teenagers often suffer gingivitis. The clinical course is more serious because of the hormonal changes in the organism. Gingivitis can also be the symptom of systemic diseases like allergies of different severity, leucocytopenia, pancreatic diabetes, herpes, avitaminosis, and consumptive diseases. Long use of some medicines (like oral contraceptives) can worsen the inflammatory process in the gum.

Another possible reason of gingivitis is the presence of some heavy metals in the organism (bismuth, lead).

What are the first symptoms of gingivitis?

The first symptoms of gingivitis are inflammation of the gum, gingival edema. The outlines of the gum change. Gingival edema increases the interdental furrow and this way subgingival space appears. The following symptoms of gingivitis are reddening of the edge of the gum, gingival hemorrhage, edema, gum hypersensitivity, unpleasant feelings while eating, swallowing.

Forms of gingivitis: acute and chronic.

Chronic and acute forms of gingivitis are rather frequent. Chronic form is very frequent with grown-ups. The disease has spring and autumn exacerbations followed by gingival hemorrhage while cleaning the teeth.

Treatment of curettage. How to cure gingivitis? Only a dentist can cure gingivitis. The process of gingivitis treatment consists in removing dental plaques as well as eliminating general and local factors that can lead to exacerbation of the disease.

• First of all follow the rules of hygiene. The dentist will inform you about all necessary procedures.
• Very often dentists have to use special medicines not only to cure the acute form of gingivitis but to eliminate all possible exacerbations.
• Many medicines are used to cure exacerbation - anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, local correctors of the immune system.
• In some cases one can try stomatological procedures: elimination of dental calculus (ultrasound or mechanical method), grinding and replacement of the fillings sticking out over the gums or being irregularly placed.
• Do not delay the treatment. Otherwise you may need a surgery (the so-called curettage). During the surgery the dentist will remove dental deposits using excavators, special hooks, curettes (closed curettage). In case intervention is inevitable the dentist will cut the gum and eliminate the deposits (open curettage).
• If the patient suffers the chronic form of gingivitis his mouth cavity will be necessarily treated with anti-inflammatory medicines and sodium bicarbonate solution.

If gingivitis was provoked by infectious or inflammatory processes you should first of all eliminate the reason of the infection. In this case the dentist will prescribe antifungal and antimicrobial medicines.

Mind that in most cases gingivitis is the result of the lowered immunity of the organism. It means that one should not only eliminate the inflammatory process but to use immune correctors as well. These medicines activate the host defense mechanisms of the oral mucosa. They also intensify phagocytosis (elimination of pathogenic bacteria by the immune system), increase the concentration of a special ferment called lysozyme in the saliva. This ferment has a powerful antibacterial action. It also stimulates the immune system and increases the production of cells that create antibodies in our organism.