The assignment this week is to define a complex term from my professional career to a non-technical audience unfamiliar with the term. The definitions should be framed as parenthetical, sentence, and expanded types. The term I am defining is “periodontal disease”.
Reading situation: A dental hygienist is explaining periodontal disease to a patient during an appointment.
Parenthetical definition: Periodontal disease (an oral condition wherein permanent gum and bone loss occurs due to persistent bacterial infection) can eventually lead to tooth mobility and loss.
Sentence definition: Periodontal disease, or periodontitis, is an oral disorder in which pathogenic bacteria left to form mature biofilm over time cause a state of persistent inflammation (redness, pain, and/or swelling) in the gums and surrounding tissues.
Expanded definition:
Periodontitis is an inflammatory disease, one of the most common in the world. 47% of adults aged 30 years and above have at least some level of periodontal disease. When oral bacteria is left to develop and mature into a functional biofilm, the body’s immune system responds with inflammation at the site. Initially this presents as gingivitis: a reversible condition characterized by red, swollen gums. Once the inflammatory condition and bacterial colonization has reached a critical point, irreversible changes in the oral tissues begin to occur. This is the stage termed “periodontal disease”. The inflammatory toxins released by the chronic inflammatory state of the body’s tissues physically break down the oral tissues at the cellular level. This process causes gum recession, bone loss, loose teeth, infections, and tooth loss. Connections between periodontal health and other systemic issues such as heart health have also been proven through research. This pathologic process can be halted and stabilized through homecare and professional interventions, but true reversal or total recovery from periodontal disease is not currently possible.
FIGURE 1: Comparison of healthy tissue, gingivitis, and periodontitis, showing loss of tissue.
(Airdrie Springs, 2021)
Airdrie Springs Dental. Gingivitis – signs and symptoms [Internet]. Airdrie Springs Dental. 2021 [cited 2022Jan28]. Available from: https://airdriespringsdental.ca/gingivitis/
Geismar, K., Stoltze, K., Sigurd, B., Gyntelberg, F., & Holmstrup, P. (2006). Periodontal disease and coronary heart disease. Journal of Periodontology, 77(9), 1547–1554. https://doi.org/10.1902/jop.2006.050405
Periodontal disease [Internet]. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2013 [cited 2022Jan28]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/oralhealth/conditions/periodontal-disease.html
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