Gums and Periodontics in English: From Plaque to Flap Surgery

Periodontal vocabulary is built on distinctions rather than lists: gingivitis against periodontitis, plaque against calculus, probing depth against attachment loss, a true pocket against a pseudopocket. Get a pair the wrong way round and the diagnosis changes.

This list covers 79 terms: the periodontal tissues, causes, disease names, chairside measurements, non-surgical treatment, gum surgery and supportive therapy.

Who this is for

  • Students — periodontology in English, from indices to flap procedures
  • Clinicians and hygienists — completing a periodontal chart in English
  • Patients — understanding a diagnosis and treatment plan given abroad

Word list to learn

Download PDF
Word
periodontium ˌperiəˈdɒnʃiəm
periodontal ligament ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈlɪɡəmənt
alveolar bone ælˈviːələ bəʊn
supporting tissues səˈpɔːtɪŋ ˈtɪʃuːz
biological width ˌbaɪəˈlɒdʒɪkəl wɪdθ
keratinized tissue ˈkerətɪnaɪzd ˈtɪʃuː
gingival margin ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ˈmɑːdʒɪn
gingival contour ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ˈkɒntʊə
plaque plɑːk
dental plaque ˈdentəl plɑːk
biofilm ˈbaɪəʊfɪlm
calculus ˈkælkjʊləs
tartar ˈtɑːtə
supragingival calculus ˌsuːprəˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ˈkælkjʊləs
subgingival calculus sʌbˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ˈkælkjʊləs
plaque retention factor plɑːk rɪˈtenʃən ˈfæktə
periodontal pathogen ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈpæθədʒən
risk factor rɪsk ˈfæktə
smoking ˈsməʊkɪŋ
diabetes ˌdaɪəˈbiːtiːz
gingivitis ˌdʒɪndʒɪˈvaɪtɪs
chronic gingivitis ˈkrɒnɪk ˌdʒɪndʒɪˈvaɪtɪs
gum disease ɡʌm dɪˈziːz
periodontal disease ˌperiəˈdɒntəl dɪˈziːz
periodontitis ˌperiədɒnˈtaɪtɪs
chronic periodontitis ˈkrɒnɪk ˌperiədɒnˈtaɪtɪs
aggressive periodontitis əˈɡresɪv ˌperiədɒnˈtaɪtɪs
necrotizing gingivitis ˈnekrətaɪzɪŋ ˌdʒɪndʒɪˈvaɪtɪs
periodontal abscess ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈæbses
gingival hyperplasia ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ˌhaɪpəˈpleɪziə
gingival enlargement ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ɪnˈlɑːdʒmənt
gingival recession ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl rɪˈseʃən
furcation involvement fɜːˈkeɪʃən ɪnˈvɒlvmənt
tooth migration tuːθ maɪˈɡreɪʃən
drifting ˈdrɪftɪŋ
periodontal pocket ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈpɒkɪt
pocket depth ˈpɒkɪt depθ
probing depth ˈprəʊbɪŋ depθ
true pocket truː ˈpɒkɪt
pseudopocket ˈsjuːdəʊpɒkɪt
clinical attachment level ˈklɪnɪkəl əˈtætʃmənt ˈlevəl
attachment loss əˈtætʃmənt lɒs
bleeding on probing ˈbliːdɪŋ ɒn ˈprəʊbɪŋ
suppuration ˌsʌpjʊˈreɪʃən
gingival index ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ˈɪndeks
plaque index plɑːk ˈɪndeks
bleeding index ˈbliːdɪŋ ˈɪndeks
mobility grade məʊˈbɪləti ɡreɪd
periodontal screening ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈskriːnɪŋ
bone loss bəʊn lɒs
horizontal bone loss ˌhɒrɪˈzɒntəl bəʊn lɒs
vertical bone loss ˈvɜːtɪkəl bəʊn lɒs
angular defect ˈæŋɡjʊlə ˈdiːfekt
infrabony defect ˌɪnfrəˈbəʊni ˈdiːfekt
scaling ˈskeɪlɪŋ
root planing ruːt ˈpleɪnɪŋ
scaling and root planing ˈskeɪlɪŋ ənd ruːt ˈpleɪnɪŋ
deep cleaning diːp ˈkliːnɪŋ
subgingival debridement sʌbˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl dɪˈbriːdmənt
full-mouth disinfection fʊl maʊθ ˌdɪsɪnˈfekʃən
local antimicrobial ˈləʊkəl ˌæntimaɪˈkrəʊbiəl
re-evaluation ˌriːɪˌvæljuˈeɪʃən
periodontal surgery ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈsɜːdʒəri
flap surgery flæp ˈsɜːdʒəri
open flap debridement ˈəʊpən flæp dɪˈbriːdmənt
gingivectomy ˌdʒɪndʒɪˈvektəmi
gingivoplasty ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəʊˌplæsti
crown lengthening kraʊn ˈleŋθənɪŋ
gum graft ɡʌm ɡrɑːft
connective tissue graft kəˈnektɪv ˈtɪʃuː ɡrɑːft
free gingival graft friː ˈdʒɪndʒɪvəl ɡrɑːft
pedicle graft ˈpedɪkəl ɡrɑːft
guided tissue regeneration ˈɡaɪdɪd ˈtɪʃuː rɪˌdʒenəˈreɪʃən
root coverage ruːt ˈkʌvərɪdʒ
periodontal maintenance ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈmeɪntənəns
supportive periodontal therapy səˈpɔːtɪv ˌperiəˈdɒntəl ˈθerəpi
recall visit rɪˈkɔːl ˈvɪzɪt
splinting ˈsplɪntɪŋ
periodontist ˌperiəˈdɒntɪst

Useful phrases

Click the icon to hear the pronunciation

Phrase
Your gums bleed because there is plaque under the gumline.
Bleeding gums are not normal.
We measure the pockets around each tooth.
Three millimetres is healthy; this one is six.
You have moderate gum disease.
The bone around these teeth has receded.
Gum disease is usually painless until it is advanced.
We'll start with a deep clean under the gum.
This will be done over two appointments, one side at a time.
Your gums may feel sore and the teeth sensitive afterwards.
Smoking makes gum treatment less effective.
Can the bone grow back?
We can stop it getting worse, but lost bone does not return.
You'll need cleaning every three months instead of every six.

Bleeding Gums: The Periodontal Examination and Treatment

Click the speaker icon to hear the full dialogue

Patient
My gums bleed every time I brush. I assumed I was brushing too hard.
Dentist
Bleeding is usually inflammation, not injury — healthy gums don't bleed. Let me measure around each tooth.
Patient
What are the numbers you're calling out?
Dentist
Probing depths in millimetres. Up to three is normal. I'm reading fours and fives at the back, and a six here.
Patient
Is six bad?
Dentist
It means a periodontal pocket. The gum has detached from the root, and neither I nor you can clean to that depth.
Patient
So it's more than gingivitis?
Dentist
Yes. Gingivitis is reversible inflammation. Once there is attachment loss and bone loss on the X-ray, it's periodontitis.
Patient
Can the bone grow back?
Dentist
Generally no. The goal is to stop further loss, not to regain what has gone.
Patient
What causes it?
Dentist
Plaque that hardens into calculus below the gum. Smoking and diabetes are the two biggest risk factors — does either apply to you?
Patient
I smoke about ten a day.
Dentist
That matters more than anything else here. Smoking also masks the bleeding, so the disease progresses more quietly.
Patient
What's the treatment?
Dentist
Scaling and root planing — a deep clean below the gum, usually over two visits under local anesthesia.
Patient
And then it's finished?
Dentist
No. We re-evaluate after eight weeks, then you move to periodontal maintenance every three months. Periodontitis is controlled, not cured.
Patient
Will I lose the tooth with the six?
Dentist
Not necessarily. If the pocket reduces after treatment and you stop smoking, it can stay stable for years.

Common mistakes

Avoid these common mistakes

Wrong The hygienist removed the dental stone from the lower front teeth.
Correct The hygienist removed the calculus from the lower front teeth.

This calque is dangerous because the wrong phrase is a genuine English term for something else: dental stone is the gypsum product poured into an impression to make a cast. The hardened deposit on teeth is calculus clinically and tartar in everyday speech, subdivided into supragingival and subgingival calculus. The soft deposit that precedes it is plaque or biofilm. Russian зубной камень, German Zahnstein and Polish kamień nazębny all build the word from stone, which is where the error starts.

Wrong The treatment plan includes scaling and root planning.
Correct The treatment plan includes scaling and root planing.

One letter, two unrelated verbs. To plane means to smooth a surface, as a carpenter planes a board — which is exactly what is done to the root, removing softened cementum and deposits. To plan means to organise. So the procedure is scaling and root planing with one n, while treatment planning has two. Spellcheckers stay silent because both words are valid, and the error appears regularly even in native-authored material. If in doubt, ask whether you are smoothing or organising.

Wrong The radiograph shows gingiva inflammation and bone loss.
Correct The radiograph shows gingival inflammation and bone loss.

Gingiva is the noun, gingival the adjective, and English requires the adjective in attributive position: gingival inflammation, gingival margin, gingival recession, gingival sulcus, gingival index. Gingiva inflammation is ungrammatical. The Latin plural is gingivae /ˈdʒɪndʒɪviː/, though clinicians usually just say gums. The same pattern governs the rest of the field: periodontium gives periodontal, apex gives apical, occlusion gives occlusal.

Wrong The gum grew over the crown margin on the upper left.
Correct There is gingival overgrowth at the crown margin on the upper left.

The meaning is clear but the register is conversational; clinical English nominalises findings. Write gingival overgrowth, gingival enlargement or gingival hyperplasia. Then specify the cause: drug-induced gingival enlargement from phenytoin, ciclosporin or calcium channel blockers, or a local response to a restoration overhang. Management is gingivectomy or gingivoplasty. The same nominalising habit governs the whole record — not the gum bleeds when probed but bleeding on probing.

Wrong The pocket measures 5 mm, so there is 5 mm of attachment loss.
Correct The pocket measures 5 mm with 2 mm of recession, so there is 7 mm of attachment loss.

They are different measurements, and substituting one for the other misstates the diagnosis. Probing depth runs from the gingival margin to the base of the pocket — but the gingival margin moves, receding in one patient and swelling coronally in another. Clinical attachment level is measured from a fixed landmark, the cementoenamel junction. The arithmetic is attachment loss equals probing depth plus recession; where the margin sits coronal to the CEJ, recession is subtracted instead. A 5 mm pocket with 2 mm of recession therefore represents 7 mm of attachment loss, which is why CAL rather than probing depth defines disease severity.

About This List

Four pairs that decide the diagnosis

Periodontics rests on distinctions:

  • Gingivitis vs periodontitis: in gingivitis only the gingiva is inflamed and the process reverses; in periodontitis attachment and bone are lost and it does not
  • Plaque vs calculus: a bacterial biofilm against a mineralised deposit. Tartar is the lay synonym for calculus
  • Supragingival vs subgingival calculus: above and below the gingival margin, removed by different means
  • True pocket vs pseudopocket: a true pocket means attachment has been lost; a pseudopocket is only enlarged gingiva. They probe the same and mean opposite things

Probing depth and attachment loss are different measurements

The most consequential pair. Probing depth runs from the gingival margin to the base of the pocket. Clinical attachment level is measured from the cementoenamel junction — a fixed landmark. With recession, probing depth can look modest while attachment loss is severe.

The rest of a periodontal chart:

  • bleeding on probing — the key sign of activity
  • suppuration — pus from the pocket
  • mobility grade — degree of movement
  • furcation involvement — disease reaching the root division
  • gingival index, plaque index, bleeding index
  • horizontal and vertical bone loss, angular defect, infrabony defect

Non-surgical treatment: three names for one appointment

Scaling removes deposits, root planing smooths the root surface, and together they are written as scaling and root planing — the standard chart entry. The same thing is explained to patients as deep cleaning.

Nearby: subgingival debridement, full-mouth disinfection, local antimicrobial. A course always ends in re-evaluation — reassessment some weeks later, before any decision about surgery.

Gum surgery: access, excision, graft

Procedures sort by purpose:

  • gaining access to the root: flap surgery, open flap debridement
  • removing excess tissue: gingivectomy, gingivoplasty
  • exposing more tooth: crown lengthening
  • covering recession: gum graft, connective tissue graft, free gingival graft, pedicle graft, root coverage
  • rebuilding tissue: guided tissue regeneration

Then the indefinite phase: periodontal maintenance and supportive periodontal therapy are two names for the same thing, a recall visit is the appointment itself, and splinting stabilises mobile teeth.

Terminology that has shifted

  • Pyorrhoea and periodontosis are obsolete; current usage is periodontitis
  • Aggressive periodontitis and chronic periodontitis are the older classification — newer staging uses stages and grades, but both systems appear in reading lists
  • Periodontitis unqualified means gum disease; the apical condition needs periapical periodontitis
  • Deep cleaning is patient-facing only — never write it in a chart
  • Recession describes the gingiva moving apically; the result is an exposed root
  • Debridement covers removal of deposits and diseased tissue generally, and is the broader term over scaling

Frequently Asked Questions

Calculus in clinical writing, tartar with patients — the same register split that runs through the subject. Avoid dental stone, which is a real term for the gypsum used to pour casts. Calculus is classified as supragingival or subgingival, and its soft precursor is plaque, also called biofilm.

Root planing, one n. To plane means to smooth a surface, as a carpenter planes wood, which is precisely what is done to the root surface. To plan means to organise, giving treatment planning with two n's. Both spellings are real words, so spellcheckers never flag the error — it appears even in published material.

Probing depth is measured from the gingival margin to the base of the pocket, but that margin moves — it recedes in some patients and swells coronally in others. Clinical attachment level is measured from the fixed cementoenamel junction, so it reflects true tissue destruction. Attachment loss equals probing depth plus recession, which is why a 5 mm pocket with 2 mm recession means 7 mm of attachment loss.

Bleeding on probing indicates active inflammation at that site. Its real value is negative predictive: sites that consistently do not bleed are very likely to stay stable, which makes it one of the most useful measurements in monitoring. It is charted alongside probing depth, recession, mobility grade and furcation involvement during periodontal charting.

Scaling removes deposits from the tooth surface, above and below the gumline. Root planing smooths the root itself, removing softened cementum and embedded deposits. Curettage removes the soft tissue lining of the pocket and is now rarely performed deliberately. The first two together are scaling and root planing, or subgingival debridement, the mainstay of non-surgical therapy.

It is bone loss extending into the furcation, where the roots of a multi-rooted tooth divide. It worsens prognosis sharply because the area cannot be cleaned effectively, by the patient or with instruments. Grading is by horizontal probe penetration. The related anatomy is the bifurcation in two-rooted teeth and the trifurcation in upper molars.

Gingival overgrowth, also called gingival enlargement or hyperplasia, is an increase in gum tissue volume. The commonest systemic cause is drug-induced gingival enlargement from phenytoin, ciclosporin or calcium channel blockers; locally it can be a response to plaque or to a restoration overhang. Treatment is gingivectomy or gingivoplasty, alongside removing the cause.

Learn words more effectively in the app

Spaced repetition, smart trainings and progress tracking.
Download OneMoreWord and remember words forever

App Store Google Play

Related lists

Mouth Anatomy in English

Tooth Anatomy in English

Types of Teeth in English

Dental Symptoms in English

Dental Diseases in English