Vincent Infection, also known as Vincent’s Angina or trench mouth, is a bacterial infection primarily affecting the gums and oral cavity. It’s commonly caused by a combination of bacteria, most notably Fusobacterium fusiforme and Borrelia vincentii. Poor oral hygiene, stress, and a weakened immune system are contributing factors to the development of this condition. This article focuses on the Vincent Infection causes symptoms treatment and restoration processes.
What is Vincent Infection:
There is another dental disease which affects the gums and causes much distress. It is acute in character appearing suddenly for no apparent reason. The common name is Vincent infection, but it is also called ulceromembranous stomatitis, trench mouth, and acute necrotizing gingivities.
This disease is a painful inflammation of the margins of the gums which rapidly involves the deeper tissues. On the occasion it may penetrate all the way to the underlying alveolar bone. As the condition progresses, a slough forms between the teeth and the ulcerated gum in that area. This entire gum tissue is soon destroyed in Vincent infection. The ulcer and sloughing spread to the gum merging on the sides of the teeth and may involve the cheeks, lips, throat and tongue.
Symptoms of Vincent Infection:
Accompanying this ulceration, necrosis and sloughing of tissue, there is a distinctive and peculiarly offensive odor. One can almost diagnose the disease from this characteristic odor. Bleeding is also a common and constant symptom in Vincent infection. The slightest touch to the affected gum will lead to free and ready bleeding. Affected persons may experience a sense of deep depression, some fever, very painful gums, an increase in slavery flow and possibly a metallic taste in the mouth.
Causes of Vincent Infection:
A contributing cause of Vincent infection is thought to be a lowered resistance on the part of the patient and an unhygenic local oral condition. There is not one specific organism responsible for the infection but a complex of spirochetes, bacteroides, fusiforms, and diphtheroids. The pre-disposing factors include a general lack of mouth cleanliness; slow difficult eruption of teeth with irritated gum flaps; ill fitting dental restorations such as bridges, partial dentures, overhanging edges of fillings; and all systemic disturbances that lower resistance to disease.
Treatment of Vincent Infection:
The condition may be eliminated easily within two or three weeks unless it has progressed so far that much tissue has been damaged. Therapy includes thorough cleaning and treatment by the dentist and careful hygienic measures by the patient at home. All the debris must be removed from the teeth by rinsing, brushing and flossing gently. Deposits of calculus and other hard irritants must be removed by the dentist. Rinsing with one and one half percent hydrogen peroxide aids in the treatment.
Restoration Process of Vincent Infection:
Following the loss of one or more teeth as a result of caries or periodontal disease, the intelligent individual has them replaced with suitable restorations. These artificial teeth may be fixed to others in the mouth or they may be removable. A fixed restoration is usually called a bridge. It should be cleaned as carefully as the teeth to which it is fastened, for accumulation of food and bacteria upon its surfaces will lead to gum disease and decay of adjoining teeth. The cleansing is done with dental floss and a toothbrush. On occasion it is found necessary to thread the floss underneath the bridge in order to clean the restoration correctly.
Investigators in dental research are attempting new methods to replace lost teeth. Transplants of whole tooth and root are sometimes possible within the same mouth. Plastic implants are being tried to see if tissue will form around the base of the artificial tooth to hold it. These implants are put in place seconds after a tooth is pulled.
Restoration of the partial loss of one or more teeth is possible through capping. The damaged enamel is removed and a plastic or cement cap is fitted around the remaining stump.
If more than one tooth is lost, they are replaced by a removable restoration called a partial denture. Partial dentures may be fixed or removable. They are a necessary adjunct to the later years for they make it possible to masticate food satisfactory at a time when chewing food thoroughly has special significance. There is a tendency on the part of people lacking several teeth, to eat only those foods that are soft and easily swallowed. This habit leads to nutritional disorders, to diet selections that promote digestive disturbances and to the fostering of chronic disease.
When complete artificial dentures finally replace all the natural teeth, these problems become more acute. One is rarely able to masticate food with the same ease or dexterity with a set of false teeth as he could with those that nature provided. There are some exceptions to this statement. Certainly complete dentures feel a great need for the toothless, since it is only through their use that food may be satisfactorily consumed. Dentures need frequent adjustment to compensate for the shrinkage of the gums and alveolar bone at time passes and occasionally they need refitting. The gum ridges, like the eyes and feet change with time and use.
A well fitting denture will cause no sore spots on the gums. It will remain relatively stable in the mouth during chewing and talking. It should be cleaned following eating and before retiring by washing thoroughly with water and a soft brush. Should it have a sharp edge or rough bumps, these should be rounded and polished by the dentist, for they can irritate the gums. Dentures aid in maintaining good health and are a valuable safeguard against deficiency diseases in the aged.
Final Thought:
Vincent infection which is also known as trench mouth is a serious oral health problem affecting gums and oral cavity. Though the serious cause of Vincent infection is the bacterial infection but there are other factors like poor oral hygiene, stress, poor immune system that also contribute to the causes of Vincent infection. The best way to prevent this infection is to incorporate good oral hygiene practice and timely visits to your dental care adviser, at least twice a year.
