Dental Services

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    We have asked our friends and supporters from County Dental to write a monthly article. We hope this is the first of many. County Dental works with all PBA dental insurance. Any questions please contact Peggy or log on to the County Dental web site.

    Dr. Mara Rosenberg is from Couny Dental. They have locations throughout the Hudson Valley. Dr. Rosenberg also attends our monthly meetings for any questions you may have.

Web Site: http://www.countydental.com/

Smoking and Periodontal Disease     

by Mara Rosenberg, DDS

            My mother doesn’t have legs like Cindy Crawford, therefore I don’t either.  If someone in your family has high blood pressure, there’s a good chance you will too.  There are many things about our bodies we can’t change.  We do, however, have full control over our lifestyle choices.  It’s no secret that smoking is bad for you.  It causes numerous cancers, respiratory diseases and can worsen many other health problems.  What many people don’t know is how smoking can affect your gums and jawbones, your periodontal health.  According to a study published in the Journal of Periodontolgy, it may be responsible for almost half of the cases of periodontal disease in adults!

            The American Dental Association defines periodontal disease as “an infection of the tissues that support your teeth. Your gum tissue is not attached to the teeth as high as it may seem. There is a very shallow v-shaped crevice called a sulcus between the tooth and gums. Periodontal diseases are caused by plaque bacteria that attack just below the gum line in the sulcus.  There, they cause the attachment of the tooth and its supporting tissues to break down. As the tissues are damaged, the sulcus develops into a pocket: generally, the more severe the disease, the greater the depth of the pocket.”  When teeth lose their bone support, they can become infected, loose and eventually fall out.

            Nicotine causes blood vessels to vasoconstrict, or narrow.  This has several effects on the tissues that support your teeth.  First, it reduces the clinical signs of gum inflammation, a precursor to periodontal disease.  This can make it more difficult for your dentist to diagnose periodontal problems during the early and easily treatable stages.  Second, there is a fluid in the sulcus called gingival crevicular fluid, or GCF.  This fluid bathes the sulcus with nutrients and your body’s natural defenses against bacteria.  When blood vessels constrict, the amount of GCF flowing through the sulcus decreases.  This means that your body can’t properly fight bacteria living in the sulcus and they continue to multiply, destroying gums and bone support.  Several studies comparing the GCF of smokers to non-smokers found that smokers have less fluid in their sulci. 

            No matter how periodontal disease is treated, early diagnosis and your body’s ability to heal are crucial for treatment success.  Almost 80-90% of treatment failures occur in smokers.  Fibroblasts are an important cell in periodontal healing.  They produce collagen, the building block for tooth-supporting structures.  Science shows that fibroblasts actually take in nicotine, which inhibits their ability to function properly.  These cells can no longer perform their job of attaching the gums to your teeth. 

            No matter how good their oral hygiene is, current smokers are about four times more likely to have periodontal disease than people who never smoked.  Scary fact:  A pack-a-day habit costs smokers, on average, two teeth every ten years!  According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only about 20% of people over age 65 who have never smoked are toothless, while a huge 41.3% of daily smokers over age 65 are toothless. 

            The good news:  quitting smoking now can greatly reduce your risk of periodontal disease.  Even reducing the amount you smoke helps.  One study found that smokers down to half a pack per day had only three times the risk of gum disease compared to six times in people who smoked a pack and a half per day.  Eleven years after quitting smoking, the likelihood of developing periodontal disease is not significantly different from that of non-smokers.  Your dentist can help you quit.  At your next check-up, make sure you are evaluated for periodontal disease, especially if you smoke!