Periodontal Diseases – What is This Beast?
The prevalence of chronic inflammatory diseases of the periodontal tissues among the adult population has reached 98%. With the development and progress of humanity, the prevalence of inflammatory periodontal diseases (IPDs) has sharply increased. If at the beginning of the 20th century this disease was found in people aged 40 and older, then in the 80s and 90s, IPDs globally became noticeably "younger". What then is the cause of their occurrence?
The primary cause of chronic inflammatory periodontal diseases is considered to be dental deposits – soft dental plaque and tartar, which form due to insufficient oral hygiene, anatomical features of the dental-jaw system, changes in the qualitative and quantitative composition of the microflora, reduction of the body's protective factors, etc.
When the balance between pathogenic microorganisms and the protective forces of periodontal tissues and the body is disturbed, chronic inflammation develops in the gum tissues – chronic catarrhal gingivitis, which is a reversible condition and, if quality treatment is carried out at this stage, the process enters the remission stage.
With prolonged exposure to pathogens in the gum tissues against the background of systemic disorders, further pathomorphological changes occur, and gingivitis transitions into periodontitis: the tooth-gum attachment is destroyed, a periodontal pocket forms, oral epithelium grows into it, subgingival dental deposits occur, which in turn contribute to the deepening of the pocket.
A long-existing inflammatory process leads to the atrophy of gum tissues, the periodontium (destruction of the ligaments holding the tooth in the alveolus), and consequently to the atrophy of the alveolar bone tissue and replacement of healthy tissues with granulations, tooth loss, and as a result, a deterioration in the quality of life, impairment of chewing efficiency, problems with the gastrointestinal tract, etc.
