Bleeding Gums

when wearing a brace it is so hard to keep the plaque away from the gum margins, when your brushing your gums are bleeding because your removing the plaque thats stuck but when you see blood dont stop brushing or get scared i am a dental nurse and our dentist recommends corsodol mouthwash and tepe brushes for problems with gums

Reply 4

Reue

20

As what Joz said. The blood is because plaque has got under a little flap of gum around the base of the teeth and so the body is trying to 'flush' it out by bleeding. When your brushing and it bleeds a bit around the base of the teeth thats a good sign that your getting rid of all the build up rubbish there, dont panic.

Reply 5

Sarah:-)

7

There are probably two issues here. Firstly, braces make it difficult to clean the margins of your teeth, this will lead to a build up of plague here and cause gingivitis. Don't worry about this too much, its a reversible condition, no lasting harm will come of it but you do need to improve your brushing. As the person above said the best thing to use is some little brushes e.g. teepee (sp?) brushes or other interdental brushes. There is no need for corsodyl, its for more serious conditions than this and though it would benefit you it could also stain your teeth and can temporarily affect your taste among other things. The other issue is that it sounds like the brackets on your teeth are rubbing against your lip making it sore and bleedy. When I had my braces they gave me some wax to put on the brackets if they were hurting my lip, this could be a solution. Else eventually your lip will toughen up a bit and it won't be an issue anymore.

If you want some proper advice (i.e. not from a trainee dental student) then ask either your orthodontist or dentist, whoevers appointment you have sooner, they will both know about this problem.

Also to Dhesi - toothpaste doesn't strengthen gums, it strengthens teeth due to the fluoride in it. And also gets rid of the bacteria which causes gingivitis - this is why it stops gums bleeding.

Reply 6

corsodol does help actually are you a dental nurse do you know anything about it,

when any one has problems with bleeding etc our dentists and hygienist recommend it if you want to discus this pm me i do know what im talking about im sitting my exam to pass as a full dental nurse soon so i do actually know what im talking about (sarah)

Reply 7

Raven88

3

Try gargling with salt water.

Reply 8

OP

joz12345

when wearing a brace it is so hard to keep the plaque away from the gum margins, when your brushing your gums are bleeding because your removing the plaque thats stuck but when you see blood dont stop brushing or get scared i am a dental nurse and our dentist recommends corsodol mouthwash and tepe brushes for problems with gums

Thanks

I started to think up ideas in my head of what it could be...which isn't a good idea because I over-exaggerate everything and get mega parnoid.
Yeah it hurts when I brush them, so I try to be gentle when I do it, but I also make sure I do give them a thorough clean.

Reply 9

ok well id recommend the tepe brushes and corsodol and when you see blood try to brush more not less if you want more help or advice feel free to pm me

Reply 10

OP

Sarah:-)

There are probably two issues here. Firstly, braces make it difficult to clean the margins of your teeth, this will lead to a build up of plague here and cause gingivitis. Don't worry about this too much, its a reversible condition, no lasting harm will come of it but you do need to improve your brushing. As the person above said the best thing to use is some little brushes e.g. teepee (sp?) brushes or other interdental brushes. There is no need for corsodyl, its for more serious conditions than this and though it would benefit you it could also stain your teeth and can temporarily affect your taste among other things. The other issue is that it sounds like the brackets on your teeth are rubbing against your lip making it sore and bleedy. When I had my braces they gave me some wax to put on the brackets if they were hurting my lip, this could be a solution. Else eventually your lip will toughen up a bit and it won't be an issue anymore.

If you want some proper advice (i.e. not from a trainee dental student) then ask either your orthodontist or dentist, whoevers appointment you have sooner, they will both know about this problem.

Also to Dhesi - toothpaste doesn't strengthen gums, it strengthens teeth due to the fluoride in it. And also gets rid of the bacteria which causes gingivitis - this is why it stops gums bleeding.

Thanks

I think I might pop into my dentist and see if there's anything they can do to help.
The bleeding of my lip isn't from my braces, as it's on the lower lip and I haven't yet had the brace put on the bottom teeth yet. At first I thought it was an ulcer but it doesn't seem to have gone away :confused:

I know what you mean by the rubbing of the braces though. That happened on my top lip. Hurt like hell :mad:

Reply 11

Navajo

14

it's gum disease... loads of people have it.

Reply 12

OP

joz12345

ok well id recommend the tepe brushes and corsodol and when you see blood try to brush more not less if you want more help or advice feel free to pm me

I'll ask my mum to get some corsodol [is that mouthwash yeah??] when she goes shopping.
What's a 'tepe brush'?
Don't orthodontists usually give out special toothbrushes to their patients?? They didn't give me anything and I've been using the same brush as before.
Also, do you think it might benefit if I get a new brush?

Thanks :smile:

Reply 13

OP

Navajo

it's gum disease... loads of people have it.

WTF

Gum disease is rather serious, isn't it?

Reply 14

blissy

15

When I had train tracks they didn't cut the wire at the end of my brace short enough once and it lacerated my cheek to pieces. Then I went, sobbing, back to my dentist who called the orthodonist a "butcher" and snipped it for me.

It sounds more likely to be the things everyone else has suggested, but I thought I'd throw that in too. ALWAYS object if the wire feels snaggy.

Reply 15

yes corsodol is a mouthwash, the best mouthwash for gums, tepe brushes are little tiny brushes they are normally beside the toothpaste is the supermarkets etc they just look like tiny bottle brushes get the smallest headed ones as you get diffrent sizes, and yes when you start to use corsodol it will make a diffrence i promise you but you should get a new toothbrush as well so that you are not introducing the same toothbrush that has the microorgnaisms on it that is helping cause your gum problem

Reply 16

gum disease is just a problem that sometimes occurs but it can be sorted .

Reply 17

blissy

15

You can get corsodyl as mouthwash or gel. I think tepe brushes are those very thin ones (like pipe cleaners) that you can brush between things with. Otherwise known as interdental brushes.

Reply 18

OP

blissy

When I had train tracks they didn't cut the wire at the end of my brace short enough once and it lacerated my cheek to pieces. Then I went, sobbing, back to my dentist who called the orthodonist a "butcher" and snipped it for me.

It sounds more likely to be the things everyone else has suggested, but I thought I'd throw that in too. ALWAYS object if the wire feels snaggy.

I haven't experienced that yet *fingers crossed* Oh, apart from there was this tiniest bit of metal that stuck out from one of the bracket things and it hurt like hell and shredded up my gums sooo bad :frown:

Also, when the guy was fixing my wire at the back and threading the wire through, he did it rather vigourously and it went staright into my lip. *OUCH*

Thanks though. It's nice to hear other people's experiences with braces - whether they're good or bad.

Take care.

Reply 19