What does it mean when the dentist says 4 when checking gums?

[Haleywaley]

I've been trying to get on top of my gum disease for a good few months now. I do recall in previous appointments hearing my dentist say 5 and 6 but today it was 3 and 4's. Does this indicate improvement as today she recommended that I either get a referral to the dental hospital for periodontal treatment or go privately with them as I can be seen quicker. I don't have lots of money spare to go private and just about scrimp and save to have my deep clean every 3 months so looks like I will be on a waiting list for a long time! Anyone who has been privately for treatment what sort of price range was it? Thanks

I thought it was do with the size of pockets between gums and teeth.

5 and 6 being pretty poor, you should be aiming for 1s.

Could be way out though

I got 0 on one part!

Mine were twos and threes, I was quite pleased! Then they did a deep clean, oof that was thorough.

I go to a private dentist and he is monitoring my gums , I'm usually a 4 or I was the last time I saw him . I also see the hygienist regularly and neither have mentioned needing any referral anywhere .

Depth of pickets. The smaller, the better.

My private dentist just did a deep clean as part of the check up, I think it was £60.

Just been to the dentist today and my son asked the very same question. It is describing the state of the tooth. 0 being the best, 4 being the worst.

It's how deep the pocket in the gum is beside the tooth, ie, how much the gum is wanting to pull away from the tooth, the lower the number the better. Sounds like they want to do a below the gum line clean, removing the scale that is forming there so that hopefully the gum reconnects better with the teeth.

I had to have periodontal work a few years ago (scaling and root planing) and it was about £500/600 privately off the top of my head, so not cheap.

Ask him

Standard scoring is 0-4 with 0 being the best and 4 the worst.

I would check they've used the same scoring matrix.

Ooh I’ve always wondered this. Wasn’t sure if I needed a higher or lower number.

I love all the baffling recitations that dentists do when looking at your teeth.

It is like listening to the Shipping Forecast. Poetic and relaxing so long as you don't understand what troubles ahead might be indicated by it.

It's called BPE - basic periodontal exam, zeros are the best, 4 is gum disease, you will need some deep cleaning. They will probably do a different type of gum charting too. Do your gums bleed when you brush?

No they don't bleed anymore, they look nice and pink too whereas they used to be red and puffy

I do recall in previous appointments hearing my dentist say 5 and 6 but today it was 3 and 4's

that means you've been doing a good job of improving your oral hygiene and reducing the gum pockets caused by plaque residues that inflame the gum where it contacts the tooth. Nice one ☝️ I've been doing the same and getting lower numbers for the last few visits.

I find the hygienist visits are really helpful to keep reminding me about gum and tooth cleaning techniques.