Symptoms of gingivitis

Introduction

The symptoms may vary from patient to patient. Not every inflammation must always cause the same problems. It is also important to know how the gum inflammation came about.

Depending on this, the course of this inflammation also changes. Thus, some patients may experience some symptoms over time, while others may not. The general state of health also influences which symptoms appear and especially how pronounced they are.

A good example is pain. Some patients do not notice this inflammation for a long time, because it does not hurt at first and is therefore carried away. Other patients are more sensitive and feel every little change in the mouth area.

Symptoms

  • Gum bleeding spontaneously, by touch or while brushing the teeth
  • Gums detach from the tooth
  • Soft gums
  • Reddened gums
  • Swollen gums
  • Color change from pale pink to red
  • Gums have apparently increased
  • Feeling of pressure and/or tension in the affected area
  • Many plaque above the gumline
  • Harmonic and symmetrical course of the gumline no longer visible
  • Tartar
  • Sensitive tooth necks and teeth
  • Change in tooth position due to swollen gingiva
  • Apparently loosened teeth
  • Teeth become longer
  • Symptoms of Acute Necrotising Ulcerative Gingivitis (ANUG)
  • Pus
  • Acute fever
  • Powerlessness
  • Pain
  • Halitosis

Pain is a protective function of the body and leads to an immobilization of the aching part of the body. The pain signal is generated by certain messenger substances produced by immune cells. Pain when chewing can also occur when the strain on the teeth is too great.

In this case, the inflamed gums are compressed and tightened. In addition, radiating pain in the temporomandibular joint and ear can occur. Headaches also occur frequently.

A sign of an inflammation is the functional impairment. The muscles of the temporomandibular joint are shut down. Sometimes it also cramps when trying to use it.

Since one of the head muscles is also part of the mouth closures, headaches also occur when there is tension. Due to a connection between the oral cavity and the middle ear, an inflammation of the gums can also spread to this point, resulting in an inflammation of the middle ear. Pus only forms when there is a severe inflammation that is accompanied by bacteria.

A side effect of pus is bad breath. If this does not go away despite brushing your teeth, you should ask the advice of a dentist. Bad breath or a feeling of pressure is usually the first time you notice the source of inflammation.

Under no circumstances should the purulent area be touched with bare fingers or expressed. The danger of bacteria getting into the blood and then spreading is too great. There is a risk of bacteremia, i.e. that bacteria are in the blood, which is a risk for patients with heart problems.

A differential diagnosis for the fact that pus leaks from the gums is that the tooth has died from caries. This diagnosis is confirmed when no pain is felt on the tooth in question. The nerve is already dead and feels nothing.

The pus could also come from an abscess on the tooth. An abscess itself is an accumulation of pus in a cavity, such as the gum pocket or at the tip of the root. Nevertheless, as soon as you notice the pus, you should see a dentist as soon as possible.

The inflammation could spread to surrounding soft tissue or even the bone if not treated. Cold helps against the pain. The cold must not get directly on the tooth, but a damp, cold cloth on the cheek helps.

Fever is rarely observed in cases of mild gingivitis. The same applies to periodontitis. The reason for this is that these two diseases are chronic.

From time to time in severe periodontitis, there is an intermittent discharge of pus. The temperature of the body can be slightly elevated. Fever is more frequently observed in connection with acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis (ANUG).

Some areas of the gums die spontaneously. In addition, pus with bacteria destroying the gums is also observed. Since ANUG often progresses very quickly, the body has no chance of fighting it.Due to great pain, it is difficult to eat anything.

In such cases only fever-reducing antibiotics and painkillers help. Conversely, it is also possible that gum inflammation occurs after an illness, for example angina, which was accompanied by fever. This is because the body was weakened and used its powers to treat the sore throat.

The system of lymph channels and lymph nodes is built up in such a way that lymph collects in ever larger vessels and flows into a main vessel. The collection vessels of the head area are located at the neck. This means that these lymph nodes collect all waste products and pathogens and fight them.

In response to the work involved in fighting the pathogens, the lymph nodes swell up. The lymph nodes on the lower jaw are particularly affected, in the case of inflammation of the oral mucosa. One sign of an inflammation is the tumor, i.e. the swelling.

This occurs because the blood vessels allow more blood cells, such as red blood cells or immune cells, to pass through their wall. This phenomenon is triggered by certain messenger substances. This permeability is additionally promoted by pressure in vessels (for example high blood pressure) or by small injuries (for example also in diabetics). The gums can also be swollen because gum inflammation often leads to gum growths that look very swollen and sometimes are. The swelling caused by bacteria, which causes inflammation, can be distinguished from an allergy, where the mucous membrane of the mouth also swells, or a swelling caused by Candida, a yeast fungus that weakens the immune system.