Maintenance therapy and supportive periodontal care
Periodontology · Dental (BDS)
Tooth explorer
Interactive 3DPeel through enamel, dentin and pulp — then switch to implants, braces or dentures.
Controls
Drag the sliders or type a value — the simulation updates live.
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Study notes
Treatment succeeded, but the patient skips maintenance visits for two years and disease returns. Whose failure is this? The curriculum's answer: the system's, if maintenance wasn't built into the plan. Periodontitis is a chronic disease - like diabetes, it needs ongoing management, not one-time cure. Students learn to present maintenance at treatment's start as non-negotiable: active therapy without maintenance is money and effort that relapses.
Related topics
- Periodontium: anatomy — gingiva, PDL, cementum, alveolar bone
- Classification of periodontal diseases
- Dental plaque and calculus: formation, composition
- Etiology: local and systemic risk factors, smoking, diabetes
- Pathogenesis of gingivitis and periodontitis
- Gingival diseases: plaque-induced, non-plaque-induced