Many people may not, because the disease usually does not present noticeable symptoms in the early stages, so it often goes untreated. The effects of gum disease are reversible in the early stages, but once it progresses into advanced stages, called periodontitis, it can lead to devastating damage to the health of the mouth, including gum recession and tooth loss.
Treating gum disease helps protect your overall health and wellness by removing harmful bacteria that can lead to tooth loss or dangerous systemic illnesses. In early stages of gum disease, scaling and root planing is a deep cleaning treatment that removes the bacteria from the surface of the tooth and beneath the gum line to allow the mouth to heal.