New Periodontal Referral Centre in Sovereign Harbour, Eastbourne.

We are a “halfway house” between the general practitioner and the Periodontal Specialist, offering more affordable periodontal care for patients.

We are a practice with a Special interest in Periodontology.

Please allow me a few minutes to explain how we tackle Chronic Adult Periodontitis (CAP), share with you some of the evidence behind our techniques and give you an idea of how regular Periodontal care need not be expensive.

Introduction

Florida Probe Computerised Diagnosis System

I have been finding more and more recently that patients are attending with moderate to severe CAP and have not been keen to have implants. As we all know, part dentate patients with CAP do not make good implant patients. Coupled with this is a desire in these patients to maintain their existing dentition, free of pain and worry. Financial factors are also extremely relevant, as we all know the prices of complex implant based restorative work and specialist periodontal care.

Many of these patients feel “backed into a corner”, believing that this advanced restorative care is the only way forward.

These patients are often surprised to find that their existing dentition may be maintainable.

Diagnosis

We firmly believe that CAP is plaque induced, multi-site, progressive and a periodically active / stable infection. We also believe that untreated CAP can lead to alveolar bone loss of an average 2mm per year.

We also believe that in the majority of cases, CAP can be treated successfully and in other cases, slowed down to such an extent that it is manageable.

Every patient receives a full six point, fifteen Newton pressure periodontal chart (BOP, PD and recession) and a full set of radiographs. At this stage, an initial idea of their disease susceptibility is ascertained, along with any exacerbating intrinsic or extrinsic factors.

All charting and monitoring is carried out using the Florida Probe system which gives accurate data regardless of force used and can track and highlight problem areas over the sessions.

This, however is only the first stage of diagnosis. Because of the unpredictable nature of the disease activity and the inflammatory state of the pockets, a total of four readings are taken over the space of a year to get a full and accurate overall picture of the disease severity. That way, any bursts of activity are balanced by inactivity and false positives are reduced.

Once this initial data is collected, the patient and clinician will receive a copy of the charting, the x-rays and the individualised treatment plan.

Treatment protocols

I am very fortunate to have working with me Alison Thompson, and extremely talented and experienced hygienist and qualified Dental Health Educator. For many years, Alison has been providing non surgical periodontal therapy under local anaesthetic (now including ID blocks) to an incredibly high standard. Just as importantly, she has excellent motivational skills and builds rapport with the patients extremely rapidly.

Because of her ability to do the bulk of the debridement and lead the motivational instruction, she is able to provide Periodontal care at a substantially reduced cost.

Any non-responsive non-surgically treated sites would be highlighted and we will contact you to discuss surgical intervention.

With the help of intra-oral cameras and digital radiography, Alison can accurately match the correct inter-dental and peri-dontal cleaning aids and we carry a full range of aids which can be ordered directly from us via telephone or online from our website.

Smoking cessation plays a major role in our practice. Having been an extremely heavy smoker myself for years and been smoke free for a number of years, I am very well aware of the psychological effects of smoking and the keys to successful quitting, FOREVER. We very much believe that no-one actually really WANTS to smoke, deep down, which means that most people are open to the idea of quitting. We are dedicated to ensuring that patients realise that it can be VERY EASY to quit!

Maintenance

As the recent Axelsson 2004 study confirms, maintenance of CAP patients with debridement and motivational education is VITAL to long term success. We have a very well controlled regular maintenance programme dedicatedly run by Alison. Using phone calls, text messages and emails, we make sure patients don’t slip through the net.

We also strive to keep you informed by letter or email of the patients progress. I am also a General Dental Practitioner but for any restorative care or non-periodontal care, we always refer the patient back to you.

Results

We have collected data in our practice over the last 4 years. Those patients who have attended our regular maintenance programme have shown on average a 85% clinically significant improvement in pocket depth and a reduction of 90% diseased sites.

89% of sites of 6-8 mm depth have become 3-4 mm over a year.

On average, with moderate to severe maintainable CAP patients, they have lost on average 1 tooth per patient in 4 years of care.

Referrals

If you would like to refer a patient for a consultation, please contact us at our address, or use one of our referral forms.

Alternatively we can be contacted by email (top of page) which comes straight into my surgery.