How Does Diabetes Affect Periodontal Disease?

Diabetes and periodontal disease actually go hand-in-hand. Diabetes, being a disease that affects the blood vessels, has major implications in healing, in wound control. Periodontal disease, being a disease of chronic bacterial presence, leads to a chronic infection. Oftentimes, if you have poorly controlled diabetes, your periodontal disease can be progressive and harder to treat.

In our office, we take special care of our diabetic patients. We want their periodontal disease to be well controlled because that will affect their overall health. Some diabetics may experience more bleeding of their gum tissues. They also may be slower to heal. So if you are a diabetic, you need to pay attention to the warning signs of gum disease such as bleeding of the teeth, shifting of the teeth, or looseness of the teeth.