The dental probe, also called the periodontal probe, comprises of a handle, a distal part or portion, and a measuring needle. The shape of a periodontal probe is a long and thin bodied instrument with blunted ends. A measuring needle is used to explore the gum pockets. The needle has at least one measure gradation. The instrument has a flexible end that can go around corners in tortuous blind pockets. With this, the dentist can examine the full depth of the periodontal pockets. A dental probe can also be used to find hole in the dental enamel. The measuring needle can find whether there is any tartar or other foreign bodies present in the pocket.
The dentist uses the dental probe to measure the periodontal sulcus’ depth. When a person has gingivitis, the periodontal probe shows higher depth because the gums are swollen and are enlarged due to the inflammation of the gum tissues. On probing, there is bleeding from the gums. When a person has periodontal disease, the periodontal gums give even higher readings, because along with the swelling of the gums, there is also a loss of surrounding bone material.
Bleeding on probing, also known as BOP, is a sure sign of an inflammation present, and indicates some pathology in the lining of the gingival sulcus. A periodontal chart, a sort of topographical mapping of the patient’s gum tissues, is created with the help of the periodontal probe and it can measure the extent of the disorder present in the tissues surrounding the teeth. This chart can also be used to note the progress made along the treatment. A probing with the help of the periodontal probe indicates the state of health of the periodontium.
to simple for a dental student.this kind of reading just for public…there is not enough material o knowledge in this article..
i hope for next time u can include all the details of various types of perioprobe with the advantages and disadvatages..u can also add some special function for each of different types of perio probe.thank you..
single intergral perio probe name?
Hi, I noticed your article and thought you might also want to check out [link]where they use the latest in technology to have a complete periodontal probing system. It includes perio risk assessment and patient educational flash videos. The Probe also uses constant force pressure so that in a busy office there is a way to standardize the probe readings to avoid individual errors. Also the probe reads to the nearest 0.2mm so less rounding errors, or no guesswork when you can’t see a manual probe tip markings due to plaque or bleeding on the probe tip. Improved accuracy is a big deal, but the main purpose of the Florida Probe System is the patient experience that leads to more treatment acceptance. They show how they easily add $10,000 per month in new treatment revenue and all of this is generated by the RDH staff. Note that if you can add one SRP quad. per month that adds up to $50,000 per year (based on only a 4 day week). Because of a lack of proper charting and probing in dental offices, it is the #1 lawsuit in General dentistry today, so having a system where you use it to chart every patient once a year or more then would reduce any legal risk as well. Many offices have a free perio charting included in their PM software, but don’t use it because it is too time consuming and requires 2 people. Also those systems are not focused on the patient, thus they take up lots of time and don’t yeild any treatment acceptance. Note that the Florida Probe System talks to the patient during the exam process to indicate what pockets are normal and what pockets are not (also create a warning and danger levels that are linked to different treatments offered). Thus creates a co-diagnosis effect where patients then see the link from disease to treatment and have an urgency to ask for them. 80% of people have some form of the disease and 40% have moderate to severe levels of the disease, yet the average US office only bills for about 10%-14% in perio recare. This huge gap is often bloody prophies or offices giving away free perio care and not billing for it due to a failure to educate or have good systems in place. I know they just started doing live 15 min. web demos where they review this info and will also mail you a free 4 CEU course on how to review your own perio charting systems. This course is about 8 pages and is a self study course with a 30 question test at the end (mail or fax it in). A great way to see if there is a way to improve the systems you already have in place. I think it is mostly because periodontal disease does not hurt and has few visual signs (to the patient) that there is not more treatment acceptance without a system like the Florida Probe. Hope this info helps….
well i agree, i think you might need to mention the different types of probes, expecially the “endodontic”
i can’t seem to find information about that anywhere… it’d be a big help, to not just me, but others too.
thanks,
it would be of great help if you give details of the standard probe usually used for diagnostic purpose.
like its types, parts and funtions