Emerging from recession

I work as a full time periodontist in specialist practice, so it was a pleasure to see Prof Peter Heasman and Prof Val Clerehugh speak recently at a Procter & Gamble (Oral-B) sponsored seminar on periodontology. Their lectures were respectively entitled, Emerging from the recession without the need for cuts and Maintaining periodontal health – what matters? 

The master of ceremonies for the evening was Stephen Hancocks, editor of the BDJ and editor in chief of the International Dental Journal. Stephen began with his own entertaining style and introduced both speakers. This was a particularly fitting moment for me as I had been taught by Prof Clerehugh some time ago whilst training as an undergraduate at Manchester Dental Hospital. The fact that I am now working as a specialist in perio is testament to the teaching provided at the school during my stint as an undergraduate.  

Prof Heasman (Newcastle School of Dental Sciences) began by defining recession, namely that it occurred due to the apical migration of the gingival margin past the CEJ.  He divided the aetiology into two main causes, those caused by periodontal disease and those by non-inflammatory tissue loss. He reminded us periodontal disease was a chronic inflammatory process which resulted in the breakdown of the supporting structures of teeth. Non-inflammatory loss of gingival tissue can be a result of many factors, though is more commonly associated with local anatomy, tooth position, orthodontic tooth movement and finally, mechanical trauma. He went on to talk about the different types of recession and suggested patients with a high standard of oral hygiene tended to have predominantly buccal gingival recessions and those with low standards had predominantly lingual recessions. The aetiology and pathogenesis of periodontal disease was touched upon and its role in the formation of gingival recessions highlighted.