The progress made in the field of dentistry in the last 20 years has changed the way it’s practiced. Nowadays, it’s almost impossible for a dentist to master all existing techniques and acquire all the knowledge necessary for fixing dental esthetics, orthodontics, and dental implants.
A single professional cannot specialize in straightening crooked teeth, performing highly complicated advanced dental implant surgery or treating patients with serious periodontitis.
Specialized dentists
This is why today we have specialized dentists. They are professionals who aren’t only licensed dentists, but who have also studied specialization courses for 2 or 3 years in university in order to treat problems related to a specific dental pathology more efficiently, safely and with higher chances of success.
Prestigious dental clinics now offer teams of specialists who work together to find the prettiest, least invasive and most comfortable, lasting and natural solution to dental problems. To that end, in most cases it’s necessary to count on the collaboration of two or more specialists, thus obtaining better, more efficient results.
Periodontists
One of these specialists is the periodontist, or “gum dentist.” Periodontists are in charge of treating periodontal diseases such as periodontitis and/or pyorrhoea, which can end up destroying the bone around the teeth, leading to dental loss.
The role of Periodontists
Their main duties are to:
- detect periodontitis
- prevent the destruction of the bone
- rebuild the bone or the gum if they have been lost
Even though a general dentist can perform these functions, periodontists have higher chances of success and fewer complications occur, because they are better prepared.
Periodontology and implant dentistry
With the current boom in implant dentistry, periodontists have become a key element for successful long-term implants, because bone loss as a consequence of periodontitis is 4 times quicker around implants than it is around teeth.
In the past, clinics that specialized in periodontology only used to offer this speciality. But in recent years, these types of centres have evolved to include other specialists to treat patients more comprehensively.
If you want to find out more about periodontology, visit our blog, where you can find articles on these specialities.
