Gum disease is an infection of the gum tissue; it is not an infection of the teeth. Therefore, it's important to understand that removing your teeth won't actually treat or cure gum disease. However, extractions can be an important part of your overall treatment plan to restore your oral health. The short answer is “no.
Gum disease attacks the soft oral tissues in the mouth and the bones that surround dental structures. Just because one or more of your teeth are no longer present doesn't mean the infection doesn't exist. If left untreated, it can spread and cause further tooth loss, as well as a jaw rupture. It can also enter the bloodstream and adversely affect the heart, brain, lungs, kidneys, gut health, and other vital areas of the body.
In general, gum disease doesn't just go away once your teeth have been removed. The problem may continue to grow if left without regular care and treatment. The damage caused by gingivitis can often be reversed by eliminating the gum infection. However, periodontitis is more advanced and often causes damage to teeth and gums that is impossible to reverse without extensive dental treatments.
Fortunately, there are restorative dentistry procedures that can help repair much of this damage, such as pouch reduction surgery, gum grafts to treat gum recession, and bone grafts to treat bone loss in the jaw. If you've experienced tooth loss, dental implants can stimulate bone growth and prevent the remaining teeth from moving into the space of your smile, while restoring the function and appearance of lost teeth. When teeth and jaw become infected or bone loss occurs, a situation is created in which teeth can fall out. At this level of advanced periodontal disease, many patients need to schedule tooth extractions.
If you have reached the point where your teeth are going to fall out, it may be best to have them professionally extracted so that they are clean and the risk of infection is reduced. We never want you to get to this point and provide preventive care to avoid it. The problem is that when people don't see the dentist regularly, there's no way to prevent, detect, or treat the disease. This makes it extremely important to attend regularly scheduled dental appointments.
The only real cure for periodontal disease is to remove all your teeth and replace them with a full set of teeth supported by implants. When periodontal disease is diagnosed, it cannot be reversed with medications or nonsurgical treatments. Modern treatments for the disease are often related to prevention and management, rather than cure. The only way to completely get rid of periodontal disease is to remove the infection at its source by removing the teeth.
The bacteria cannot live, so periodontal disease leaves the body. The teeth will then be replaced with a full set of teeth supported by implants. We have a standard adult membership plan and a periodontal therapy plan, which may be helpful if you have a history of periodontitis. They are also incredibly easy to care for because they require the same oral hygiene as natural teeth, making it easier to prevent future periodontitis problems or tooth decay in the rest of the teeth.
