Diagnosis of Periodontal Disease

Diagnosis of periodontal disease is based on medical history, physical examination, periodontal screening and recording, testing tooth movement, as well as x-rays.   In order to determine if the individual is suffering from periodontal disease, the dentist gets a detailed history of any dental issues, any medical conditions, current oral hygiene, as well as history of medication and allergies.   After taking a detailed history comes the physical examination.  In this, the dentist carefully looks for the color of oral mucosa, the gum tissue, inside of the cheeks, tongue, any bleeding areas, redness or puffiness or inflammation, etc.  With the help of the physical examination, the dentist is able to delineate out the disease pattern through the various physical signs.   If an individual is suffering from periodontal disease, there is a procedure known as periodontal screening and recording, which is used to calibrate the severity of disease.  In this test, the dentist with the help of a mirror and a probe determines the depth of a pocket.  The probe used is a manual probe, which records the pocket in millimeters but these days there are new more sophisticated and automatic probes available.   In order to measure the depth, the probe is placed by the side of the tooth where as the pointer is placed in the pocket.  The dentist then stops sliding the probe in the pocket when it touches the junction of the tooth and the connective tissue.   There are three points on each tooth that are being measured, three on the side of the cheek and three on the tongue side.  If the depth of the pocket is deeper than 3 mm then this indicates the periodontal disease process.   The periodontal screening and recording is known as the diagnostic test to confirm periodontal disease, it is ranked much higher than x-rays as a diagnosing tool.   Another test that is utilized to determine the extent of disease process is through tooth movement.  It is through this test that the extent of bone support loss is determined.   X-rays are taken to determine the loss of bone supporting the teeth.  There are a total of eighteen x-rays that are taken to complete the full mouth series.