Hi Karon,

Since you have not posted any x-rays, I can only go by what you are writing here. So that is how I am answering you... based on the information you are providing. If you can post the x-rays I may be able to be more helpful. But that is up to you.

So if I'm understanding you correctly, the periodontist has not performed any dentistry .... he is basically instructing you on oral hygiene. If this is correct then I assume he is doing this because he feels that you are adamant about not wearing a partial denture even though he may feel that your better option would be to remove the hopeless teeth and put in the temporary partial denture. He has to be holding back regarding the implants for a good reason... and I think what I have stated may be the reason.

So rather than pushing you into something you are not comfortable with... even though he knows what the inevitable will be .... he is easing you into it by instructing you on how to take care of all of your teeth better than you have. Periodontal disease is a direct result of all or any of these things.....
poor oral hygiene, medications, lack of professional routine dental care, less than an ideal diet and hereditary factors.

I've stated a few times about the importance of having healthy bone prior to placing implants. You need to understand that you have a bacterial disease and it has infected your jaw bone. It is not limited to just one or two areas of your mouth. It is throughout your entire mouth, even in areas that seem to be okay to you. Although this disease is very common it is still very serious. Removing your teeth is only "part of the cure" for this problem and as I said, you may not have enough bone now or later to place implants.

When he said it would be a year before your mouth was healthy... I am taking this to mean that he feels within a year the hopeless teeth will fall out or be removed, he will scale/root plane the teeth that are salvageable, your oral hygiene will hopefully be very good and you will feel better about moving onto a partial denture. Which would definitely make going into a full denture easier.

I think he is trying to get the point across that you need to make some changes irrelevant of when the teeth are removed. The periodontist is more concerned about the bacteria than he is about your loose teeth because believe it or not, that is the worse problem of the two. Antibiotics are not going to "cure" this infection. At best they would only reduce the inflammation temporarily. The bacteria has to be manually removed every single day .... thus it is up to you to do that. He is trying to get you to take ownership of the problem... meaning if you don't make the necessary changes, the disease will progress irrelevant of what he does. If you are diligent with your oral home care, the bacteria will be reduced which means the rate of bone loss decreases as well.

Placing dental implants in infected bone can be disastrous. Not only will the implants fail, but the depth of infection can be difficult to eradicate. The physical pain from the infection and surgery can be lengthy and the financial aspect devastating. I am hopeful that your periodontist is trying to guide you in a positive, healthy direction rather than put you through oral surgery with a poor long term prognosis.

That is how I am interpreting your situation based on my professional experience and on what you have posted here. I think you could communicate better with your periodontist and that might put your mind at ease. Ask him to explain why he is going about things the way that he is and if it is because you are so against having a denture...??

Bryanna