Not just a cleaning, a defense plan
After you’ve been treated for periodontal disease, whether with a deep cleaning, laser gum surgery, or other periodontal therapy, the bacteria that caused the disease begin recolonizing below the gumline within weeks. Periodontal maintenance is the ongoing program of specialized cleanings that keeps them from re-establishing the infection.
A maintenance visit goes further than a standard professional cleaning: we clean above and below the gumline, around every treated pocket, and we measure your pocket depths at each visit so any sign of returning disease is caught at its earliest, most treatable stage.
Most periodontal patients are seen every 3 to 4 months rather than every 6. That interval is based on how quickly disease-causing bacteria repopulate below the gums. Many of our patients alternate maintenance visits between our office and their general dentist, so both their gum health and their overall dental care stay covered. We coordinate directly with your dentist to keep everyone on the same page.
The most important appointment you’ll keep
Periodontal disease is a chronic condition, like high blood pressure or diabetes. It is managed, not cured. Research consistently shows that patients who keep a regular maintenance schedule keep more of their teeth than those who don’t.
- Protects your investment in the treatment that got your gums healthy, and in any dental implants you’ve received, which need healthy gums just as natural teeth do.
- Catches recurrence early, when it can be handled with a touch-up rather than another round of active treatment.
- Removes what home care can’t: even excellent brushing and flossing can’t clean the bottom of a deep pocket.
- Supports your overall health by keeping chronic gum infection, and its whole-body effects, in check.
