4 types of Periodontal Cleaning, What is Root Planing?

Some people go for periodontal cleaning occasionally because they think it is healthy to do deep cleaning teeth regularly. But some people have never had dental scaling because they think that brushing will clean their teeth and scaling will damage them. So how much do people know about teeth cleaning?

Why do you need periodontal cleaning?

Between the gums and the root surface of the teeth, there is a shallow sulcus of 0.5-2㎜, called the gingival sulcus. The gingival sulcus easily accumulates food debris and attaches plaque, and the gingival sulcus is a difficult area to clean thoroughly. New plaque will form half an hour after brushing, and if you do not clean it carefully, it may become calculus, and these bacteria will cause gingivitis, periodontitis, bleeding, bad breath, etc., and eventually lead to loose teeth or even loss of teeth.

Deep cleaning teeth removes the plaque and calculus between the neck of the teeth and the gum sulcus by using various instruments such as laser teeth cleaning and root planing, which can reduce the inflammation of gingivitis and periodontitis.

4 types of Periodontal Cleaning

Periodontal cleaning is just a general term. In actual dental treatment, there are 4 levels of dental cleaning. They are

• General scaling teeth
• Full mouth cleaning/laser teeth cleaning
• Root planing
• Periodontal cleaning, maintenance, treatment

General scaling teeth

Suitable for: People with healthy gums

Purpose: To remove plaque, calculus, and pigmentation from the teeth and gingival sulcus, which helps the patient to maintain oral health.

Treatment procedure:

Scaling: scaling teeth, removing hard deposits

Polishing: Remove soft plaque and pigmentation from the teeth using a special dental polishing cup and paste.

Treatment Time: 30-45 minutes.

Total dental debridement/Laser teeth cleaning/All-round scraping

Suitable for: Patients who have not received a professional cleaning for a long time and have periodontal tissue disease.

Purpose: To remove as much sediment as possible from the teeth and to create conditions for a comprehensive assessment of the health of the teeth and periodontal tissues.

Treatment Procedure:

Laser teeth cleaning removes large pieces of calculus and relieves swollen gums, bleeding, and overflowing pus.

Thorough scaling to remove residual deposits and polishing of the teeth for a more thorough examination to assess the need for scaling and root planing.

Treatment time: 45-60 minutes.

Full mouth periodontal cleaning is an intermediate-level scaling procedure that provides a deeper cleaning for periodontal patients who have not seen a dentist in quite some time and is known as a “two-step” scaling procedure.

Scaling and root planing/Dental deep cleaning

Suitable for: people with very obvious symptoms of periodontal disease.

Symptoms of periodontal disease include:

• The discovery of deepened periodontal pockets (depth greater than 5 mm).
• Resorption of alveolar bone visible on X-ray.
• Bleeding gums.
• Overflowing pus.
• Tartar buildup on the root surface.

Purpose: Scaling removes plaque and calculus below the gum margin and on the root surface. The rough areas on the roots are smoothed out, bacteria are removed, and the tooth surface is smoother and more convenient for daily oral care.

Treatment procedure: Deep cleaning teeth strokes such as scraping and root planing usually require local anesthesia, so the treatment is completed in 2-4 sessions in separate areas.

Treatment time: 1-2 hours.

When periodontal disease progresses to the point of supporting bone tissue loss, periodontal scaling and root planing can only control the progression of the disease, not cure it. This is the same as in the case of hypertensive patients, who are not cured of hypertension by taking antihypertensive drugs, but whose blood pressure is only “controlled” by the antihypertensive drugs.

Periodontal cleaning, maintenance, treatment

Suitable for: people who need to maintain periodontal health after periodontal treatment (e.g., scaling and root planing). If follow-up maintenance is not done adequately, periodontal disease can recur.

Treatment procedure: Removal of plaque and soft scale around the gums, scaling, and root planing in specific areas, and final polishing.

Periodontal maintenance treatment is required after each scaling and root planing.

Treatment time: The interval between treatments will depend on the clinical assessment. However, maintenance cleanings are usually required every 3-4 months.

A dental hygienist will evaluate your oral health before treatment for oral and gum disease.

Assessment criteria include:

• Periodontal probing measurements, bleeding status
• Gum swelling, the pus overflow condition
• Whether you smoke
• Presence of systemic diseases (e.g., diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease)