I feel so let down by my dentist, diagnosed with severe periodontitis

It is really difficult to diagnose gum disease in young smokers. And despite continually warning people about the risks of smoking it often falls on deaf ears. In addition young smokers assume that it will be years before smoking does any damage.
Aggressive periodontal disease can also rapidly destroy bone and gum attachment in a matter of months.
Ask your periodontist to explain the genetic cause. It is usually related to an over reaction of your own immune system. Oral hygiene on a daily basis is key to treatment. Regular visits with a hygienist will only help if you are meticulous about cleaning your teeth daily.

Periodontal disease is much more complex than just not brushing your teeth and it affects less than 10% of the population. Most of us will develop gingivitis if we don’t brush but this is reversible. Those unlucky to have the genetic predisposition will start to see problems in 2-3 days of not brushing.

Although deep scaling is necessary the first thing your periodontist should have done is to go through all the techniques required to clean your teeth to prevent further damage.

I'm so sorry you're going through this op, it's incredibly frustrating.

We had very similar issues. Ds7 needed a filling, so the dentist did that. A week later it fell out and was causing him pain so took him back for emergency appointment and saw a different dentist. The new dentist said ds' teeth were terrible, 7 teeth had decay and he was referring us to hospital to have them all extracted! But because of NHS waiting lists that would take over a year. I asked him why the previous dentist hadn't mentioned the decay and he told me its not the dentists fault, but mine for not making him brush.

I was absolutely devastated. Ds has autism so diet and brushing is a challenge but I never expected that. I did some research and found an incredible Bupa dentist and she has saved ds' teeth. He had 1 extracted under local anesthetic and she has stabilised the rest. Turns out he has problems with his enamel, possibly due to antibiotics when he was a baby. She paints some sort of resin on the teeth and he has regular fluoride treatments.

I'm not a violent person but I could happily punch that shit dentist in the face for making me feel like a terrible mum.

I'm really sorry to hear this is I happening to you. But I can really sympathise as I am in exactly the same position as you. I go to the dentist every 6 months, and the only problem I've ever had was 2 small fillings 15 years ago. I've been through 4 NHS dentists in about 5 years at the same practice as they keep leaving. They might clean my teeth of a bit of tartar on my middle bottom teeth once a year, occasionally twice, but they have never mentioned a problem. Two months ago I attended my regular 6 month appt and it was another new dentist. He took one look, took an X-ray and told me I have 50% bone loss at the bottom front 4 middle teeth. I had to have them cleaned after having an anaesthetic because it hurt so much.
I was so stunned at the time I just accepted it and cried all the way home, really traumatized (I don't like the dentist anyway!)
But like you I've been doing my research and now realise this should have been caught/mentioned much earlier so that I could have at least prevented any further damage as much as I could. I am so angry and I'm now getting facial paralysis, feelings of like ants walking over my chin and it hurts when I bite. I didn't have any of this before the last clean!
I am seriously considering reporting the dentist but have too much going on elsewhere to have the strength to do it.
Also the dentists advice to manage it was "just get an interdental brush". I was already doing this!
Honestly I get the feeling that NHS patients are an inconvenience as we don't make them enough money.

I had exactly the same thing - fobbed off for years by a shit dental practice. Tbh all they wanted to do was sell whitening or Invisalign. I do wonder what professional standards Demtists really have, I called them but they were not helpful. have gone private and spent about £2k last year on my teeth and have more treatments to do this year, I just don’t have the money. My periodontal treatment really helped and I’ve got used to the little black triangle at the front . The gums have improved massively. I complained at the time but got nowhere.

I had some gum disease and now I use an alcohol free mouthwash with chlorhexidine. I don’t think ANY bugs can survive it! Also flossing, using interdental brushes, and Gengigel.

Hi @FuckedFuckedFuckedIt Just a couple of other (easy/cheap/free) things whilst I remember. Xylitol is very good to reduce the bacteria too. I buy a bag from the health food shop and swish a half a teaspoon around after eating/before bed. Mouth breathing is very bad for teeth too so if you do that it would be good to try to stop. Sipping drinks through the day is also not great as it dilutes your saliva which is full of the beneficial bacteria and protects teeth and gums.

That is terrible. My dentist is very thorough, I hope! I was quite surprised when he said I only had gum disease in one tooth!
Definitely complain to the practice initially, then it could be escalated to the legal route or the GDC.
I was just wondering, do you take a strong medication for your bones/osteoporosis?
There is one medicine that causes osteonecrosis of the jaw, ie bone loss. I was told I shouldn't take it as my teeth were dodgy at the time. Quite a few women I know have got this after taking this medicine for several years.

I hear you OP. This has happened to me too. I was seeing a hygienist every 12 months but in 15 years I wasn’t given an x ray and they were not monitoring it.
They said it was due to being a previous smoker but quite frankly I’ve seen crack addicts with better gums than mine.

My husband and friends are all ex smokers without gum issues so they too are thinking it could be hereditary factors
Like you I’ve been told my teeth are healthy and my brushing is good and despite repeatedly asking if they will pull my teeth out to save my gums they won’t.

i had intensive orthodontic treatment as a child and teeth removed which shouldn’t have been removed and when I’ve looked into this, this also could have a massive bearing as this weakens the bones so could have been a contributing factor

i already have bone loss too. I’m so anxious now when I go to the dentist and the way I’ve been spoken to on occasions like it’s my fault despite 15-20 years of banging my head against a wall!

I would report him to the professional dental register this will be much MUCH more damaging to him than getting sued. Healthcare professionals have insurance for being sued and lawyers will fight it out but having to answer to the register is a huge deal where he will have to defend his actions and they will do a completely impartial investigation which will change his practice in the future if he cares about his job also if the regulatory body finds him guilty it would add huge weight to then suing him

I would encourage a report to the GDC. Not to get recourse from the dentist but so the GDC can collect information on people's experiences. It may show a hole in the communications and help dentists get resources on how to talk to patients about their gum disease and next steps.

I feel your pain. It took a long time to get help with my gum issue. My dentist would be useful for caries and fillings, but I just kept getting more even though I flossed/used a water flosser.

For the last 2 years I have been seeing a dental hygienist every 4-6 months. I haven't had any further dental issues, and my dentist has put me on a 12 month call back (previously it was 3 months).

I am frustrated that it wasn't discussed with me due to the high level of caries that required 3 monthly call backs that a dental hygienist would be something that could prevent harm.

Reminds self to check when my next hygienist appointment is.

I am surprised you weren't at least informed you had gingivitis.

This woman has lots of helpful and informative posts:

What Is Perio Charting & Why Is It Important? (teethtalkgirl.com)

@FuckedFuckedFuckedIt I would say a missed diagnosis, and periodontal disease can deteriorate rapidly. The patient I mentioned upthread went from me going I'm really not happy about your gums to yikes in about 12 months. You are very young to have severe disease hence the periodontist talking about genetic predisposition. You are right if you've had xrays your bone or lack of it should have shown and your BPEs would have been measured at check ups- they're not always that useful as they are not throughout the mouth and pocketing can be missed.

If you have siblings and they haven't had a check up recently make sure they go (and after your experience) ask if their gums are healthy. They may have those same genetic risk.

Dentula's advice on how to complain is spot on and the way to proceed if that is what you feel you want to do. You have been let down by not getting a prompt and timely diagnosis. Without seeing xrays and records everyone can only speculate on when you might have been diagnosed.

I'm in the SW so nowhere near you unfortunately. With the help of the periodontist and their team they'll be able to get you in better oral health and help you stay that way. Interdental brushes, interspace brushes and an electric toothbrush will be your best tools. The work you are putting in is already making things healthier.

@Denticula you sound like a lovely dentist.

@FuckedFuckedFuckedIt as a dentist I'm sorry you've been given this news. I'm also so glad to hear how proactive you are being.

I tell multiple people a week they have gum disease and they need to improve their brushing, clean interdentally, stop smoking, avoid vaping and it's really hard to motivate and change peoples' habits. Often I've told them the same thing at previous appointments too.

Periodontal disease is really common and affects up to 50% of the world's population. It can't be cured only managed and needs someone to be really motivated to get it under control. Smoking is a massive risk for it and it masks the signs of the inflammation. In smokers often the gums just don't bleed when we probe them. Your increased bleeding and inflammation sounds like it started round about when you stopped smoking. So until then, your smoking was hiding the trouble. Anecdotally I rarely seen periodontal disease in 20-30 year olds just lots of inflammation and bleeding (although I currently have a 20 something who has aggressive disease who I will refer if they stop smoking) So anyone reading this who keeps being told they really need to clean interdentally and target their gum line we're not nagging we really recommend doing it.

I am so sorry to hear this. I am a dentist and I would like to give my perspective.

Firstly, well done on being motivated enough to do everything you are doing to improve your oral health, and on quitting smoking. This is the best thing you can do to help with the disease. Please do not despair, and follow the advice of the periodontist to get the best possible outcome for the future.

I honestly live in fear of ever missing diagnosing a case like this, and I’m sure your dentist will feel absolutely terrible about this once the full extent of your diagnosis is known to him.

If you think he was a lovely, caring dentist prior to finding out about this, chances are you are correct and he has missed the diagnosis rather than wilfully ignored it. As severe bone loss is rare for someone your age, and smoking can mask the inflammation usually seen with the disease, in an otherwise spotlessly clean mouth it can be hard to see the usual signs we would use to diagnosis periodontitis. We are all human and do make mistakes.

That said, missing the diagnosis is negligent and has had a really negative impact on you. You definitely deserve compensation for this. This is why dentists are insured, so that when we have made a mistake that causes you harm, you can be justly compensated.

I would recommend leaving the GDC out of it, there is no financial recourse for you from going down that route, and it is not a bad enough failing that the dentist would be struck off etc.

I would also recommend leaving the no win no fee lawyers out of it, they will take an absolutely huge percentage of any pay out, leaving less for you to compensate you for the situation.

I advise you make a formal complaint to the dental practice, this will trigger the dentist to involve their insurance company, who are well versed in cases like this and will be very likely to agree a settlement payment with you. I believe this would give you more compensation in the simplest and fastest way compared to a no win no fee lawyer. The dentist would also reflect, retrain and hopefully be very careful to make sure they never miss this again on another patient.

I am so sorry this has happened to you, periodontitis is such an awful disease, I wish it was more painful in the early stages so that patients could be alerted to it so much earlier.

You are completely justified to be very upset about this, but don’t lose hope, it is a very treatable condition as long as you remain motivated which you definitely seem to be.

I pay £18/ month and that covers two visits to the dentist and two to the hygienist per year. I’ve just paid £275 for two white fillings.

I don’t know what other nhs dentist practices do….that’s just mine….ours definitely do bridges but you have to have good bone support…maybe that’s why she couldn’t get the