Bleeding gums | Arthritis Information
I have Reiter's Syndrome, also known as Reactive Arthritis. The main symptom is rheumatoid arthritis, but it is auto-immune.
Anyway, my gums bleed. Whenever I brush my teeth I always spit out blood. I tend to grind me teeth or bite down a lot because of the arthritis in my jaw, and it has bent by lower front teeth inwards. I think the pressure on them probably causes them to move a bit, making my gums bleed.
I have been able to find much information on this kind of thing. I don't know if there is any solution really - I take Plaquenil for the arthritis and Amitriptline for the pain, sometimes with Co-Codamol. I seem to react badly to most medicine and those are the ones I get on with best, even if they do not provide the best treatment.
I tried changing toothpaste a few times but nothing seems to make much difference.
Has anyone had experience with bleeding gums?
Thanks in advance everyone. I don't post much but just reading this forum gives me strength some times.
Hi Mojo, I too have some areas that bleed and it's gum disease even though I've gone to the dentist every 6 months for cleanings for years. I'm now going every 3 months. Gum disease is caused by bacteria and can be difficult to treat because of the immune suppres. drugs we take.
You probably need to go to the dentist for a deep cleaning and floss twice a day. The dentist can give you a mouthwash and toothpaste that will help the situation. Good luck. Lindy
Mojo,
What does your dentist say and how long ago did you see a dentist?
Well at the moment I don't have a dentist because the one I was with "de-registered" me when I didn't go for a while. In the UK we have to pay for dentistry and I don't have insurance (thankfully arthritis treatment is free on the NHS) so I only tend to go if there is a problem.
The last time I saw them they said that the problem was where I clamp my jaw down it is bending my lower front teeth out of place. I could get a brace to try and push them back but it would be expensive and probably not work that well.
I don't take immuno-suppressants as I react badly to them. The Plaquenil is actually normally used for the treatment of malaria, but it is known to also help with rheumatoid arthritis.
I will try using more mouthwash and get a deep clean, as LinB suggests. My teeth are quite bad anyway. They came through wonky and I had to have four removed to make room for the others, and then had a brace fitted. Even so they are far from straight. Maybe now they are bent backwards I am not able to clean them as completely as I used to.
Apologies if it seems like I have missed the obvious step of asking a dentist. I did ask last time, which was about 18 months ago, but they were not much help. The rheumatology and urology departments are not that much help either, but I suppose there is no fix and my joints are already wrecked so there isn't much they can do.
Mojo,
I don't know, but you might check out to see if seeing a periodontist is covered under NHS. Could be just the routine cleaning and cavities and such are not covered.
If you can get the periodontal problem cleared, in the absence of regular visits for cleaning, buy one of the Crest Pro-Spin Brushes that are battery operated. These do an excellent job of keeping teeth clean.
Nothing is a substitute for professional dentistry but in the absence of that, this brush might help.
Mojo, in one of my past lives (just how I refer to one of the may hats I have worn
I purchased a water pik several months ago and see a dramatic improvement in my gums. My destist and hygenist remarked at the improvement. I bought the kind that hooks up to the shower and runs on water pressure, not batteries or electric. It's a lot less messy than the counter type. I also purchased a small battery operated unit for traveling.
I have read that RA and gum disease go hand-in-hand. I starting using the water pik in the hope of trying everything and anything to help my RA, and I think it's working (a tiny bit).
Some interesting replies, thanks everyone.
SnowOwl, I take B12 supplements to help combat tiredness and also take vitamins+iron tablets. I have been trying to improve my diet to help control my weight (I'm about 12-14kg overweight, which I think is about 2 stones (er... 28lbs?)) but as I imagine you know it's not easy when exercise = pain.
Maybe it's a British thing but going to the dentist just for a clean isn't really something people here seem to do, or maybe it's just the people I speak to.
I do floss occasionally but didn't want to do it too much because it always leads to more bleeding. From what people are saying it sounds like it's probably worth stick with it for a while it see if it helps. Nancy, the water pik sounds interesting, I will have a look for one. The problem I have with flossing is that because my teeth are quite bad it is hard to get in between them all with string. Maybe water will work better.
Mojo,
I'm 22 and had ReA for about 3 years. Had the same problems with gum bleeding, swollen gums and pretty awful breath some times. I hate to floss too, but after a couple weeks I got used to it and the bleeding stopped. The dentist told me to rinse with hydrogen peroxide too, which tastes kinda bad but helped out a lot. I've got some tight teeth too, gotta go with the crest glide.
good luck
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