Root planing and scaling is a dental procedure used to remove bacteria and plaque from the roots of teeth to reverse gum disease. It involves using metal scrapers and anesthesia, and may require multiple visits. Ongoing maintenance is necessary to prevent the bacteria from growing back. The cost can be prohibitive, and the goal is to control gum disease rather than cure it.
Dentists recommend that most people get their teeth cleaned twice a year. This involves removing plaque buildup, usually with small metal tools, on the tooth surface. However, if you start showing signs of gum disease, brushing your teeth doesn’t always adequately address the problem. Especially when the gums don’t look rosy and healthy and have started to recede, dentists and dental hygienists will recommend a procedure called root planing, along with scaling, to help reverse the damage gum disease can cause.
Whereas the average cleaning helps remove plaque and buildup around the teeth and right under the tops of the gums, root smoothing and scaling goes much deeper, directly to the roots of the teeth. Because the dentist is working on the roots, anesthesia is used and it may take several visits to smooth out and scale all of the teeth and their roots. This procedure can also be used in preparation for dental repair of one or more teeth.
The goal is to remove all bacteria, buildup, and any substances that may be causing your gums to recede and will ultimately contribute to more serious gum disease. The roots of the teeth are seen as infected. This means that dentists can also place antibiotic substances at the roots to kill the bacteria.
There are several tools that can be used for root smoothing and scaling. Scaling involves using metal scrapers to remove hardened plaque. Any normal cleaning usually requires some scaling of the teeth. Dentists may also use sonic or ultrasonic cleaners at the roots and on the surface of the teeth. These are thought to have a potentially lower risk of infection than metal scalers. Most dentists use a combination of both techniques, tackling truly hardened pieces of plaque with a scaler.
The main goals are to remove plaque, eliminate infection and provide the gums with a smooth surface from the roots up which can help regrow healthy gum matter. The degree to which this is effective depends on how advanced the gum disease is. Some patients complain that one of the main difficulties in the procedure is affording it. Even with dental insurance, only a small amount of root planing may be covered, and the cost can make the procedure prohibitively expensive for some people, especially if the work involved in root planing is significant and the procedure must be performed over several visits in study.
Diagnosing periodontal or gum disease means ongoing maintenance of your teeth and gums that is far more significant than regular cleanings. Usually people with this condition need to have maintenance treatments every three months to prevent the bacteria from growing back. Unfortunately, once gum disease sets in, the effort isn’t to cure it, which isn’t currently possible, but instead to control it. Keeping gum disease under control can help you maintain your gums and teeth without the condition doing more damage to your gums or teeth.
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