Associated symptoms

Plaque that is not removed regularly has increasingly fatal consequences. Over time, the plaque fossilizes into tartar by depositing the minerals of saliva in it. The bacteria lead to caries and inflammation.

Dyes in food cause it to turn yellow-brownish. Especially after the intake of sugary food, the caries bacteria produce acid in the plaque, which can then act directly on the tooth. This demineralizes the tooth – caries develops.

Other bacteria, which act via a different mechanism of action, migrate under the gums and lead to gum inflammation. If this is not treated, gingivitis is followed by periodontitis, i.e. an inflammation of the entire periodontium. The consequence is the loss of teeth. Inflammations in the mouth area also lead to bad breath.

Plaque vs. tartar

Plaque is a biofilm that is made up of food residues, saliva, bacteria and their metabolic products. This sticky film keeps re-forming despite brushing your teeth. After 4 to 12 hours at the latest it has formed again.

However, tartar only develops where dental plaque is present, because it develops directly from the plaque. This reacts with minerals from the saliva and fossilizes into hard tartar that cannot be cleaned away by the patient. Depending on the composition of the saliva, tartar develops faster in some patients than in others.

However, if you have good oral hygiene and regularly remove plaque thoroughly, you will not get tartar. Tartar is most likely to be found at the exit of the large salivary glands because the plaque there reacts directly with the minerals in the saliva. The excretory ducts are located in the upper jaw on the cheek side in the area of the 1st and 2nd large molars.

In the lower jaw it is located under the tongue. That is why there is often a lot of tartar on the inner side of the lower incisors. The advantage of tartar, as far as we can speak of this term, is that often where there is tartar, no living bacteria adhere to the tooth and can further damage it by caries.

They do not get oxygen and therefore cannot produce caries. However, tartar is dangerous for the periodontium. The bacteria migrate along the tooth into the gum pocket and lead via gingivitis to periodontitis, i.e. inflammation of the gums and ultimately of the entire periodontium. This results in premature tooth loss.