Scaling & Root Planing

In periodontal disease, swollen unhealthy gums start to pull away from the teeth because of pockets where infection-causing plaque & tartar accumulate. During a scaling part of the treatment, the dentist or hygienist removes plaque, tartar & bacteria from the surfaces of your teeth & tooth roots. This is done with either hand tools or electronic instruments, or a combination of both.

If you have gum disease, your dentist may recommend that scaling & root planing, along with periodontal maintenance checkups, become part of your routine dental visits, just like your cleanings & exams.

While scaling & root planing cannot cure periodontal disease, it can slow or stop its progression. The point of this procedure is to remove the bacteria-filled plaque & tartar that inflame your gums & the surrounding bone. Scaling & root planing can reduce the need for surgical intervention in the future & often helps swollen bleeding gums become healthy & pink again.

Procedure Overview

• The handheld instruments used are a scaler & a curette. Both of these tools look a little like a metal chopstick with a sharp, curved tip. You’ve seen them before if you’ve had a regular dental cleaning. By gently scraping the tool along your tooth below the gum line, the dentist can find areas of tartar & plaque buildup.
• Electronic scalers use ultrasonic vibration to remove plaque & tartar. The vibrating metal tip of the tool can chip away tartar & an accompanying water spray washes away the debris as it’s removed. This water spray also keeps the tip of the tool nice & cool.
• In the root planing part of the treatment, the dentist or hygienist smoothes the surface of the tooth root to make it harder for bacteria to stick in the future & easier for the gums to re-attach. This is done with the same tools mentioned above but with a focus on making rough spots smooth again. Once the root planing is finished, the dentist may apply a disinfectant or antibiotics to further discourage the return of bacteria.
• If you’ve ever been poked in the gums by accident, you know how sensitive they can be, especially if they’re already swollen from periodontitis. Before starting the scaling & root planing treatment we will numb your gums so that you won’t have any pain or discomfort while we’re working. Typically, only one or two quadrants of a patient’s mouth are treated at a time. That way we only need to numb one side of the mouth, so you’ll still be able to eat & drink fairly normally following your appointment as the anesthesia starts to fade.