It is a good practice to check your oral health for screening out any changes in your mouth that may cause bigger troubles. If you see a hard bony bump on your gums, it could be a cyst.
What Is a Cyst On Gums?
A cyst on the gums is a small protrusion, more like a soft, movable bump. It is center-filled with soft materials like pus or fluid.
These fluid-filled small balls are mainly around the roots of dead teeth. Leaving them untreated is not a good option since if they are left to grow, they place extra pressure on your teeth, which results in pain and weakness.
Dental cysts initiate as uninfected growths; however, since it’s inflammatory in nature, the cyst may start taking over the pulp when the tooth dies, resulting in swelling.
Heavy pressure is put on the bone tissue of the jeopardized tooth. As the cyst grows, it eats away the inner tooth structure.
Types of Cysts That Can Grow On Gums
The 3 types of cysts are as follows:
Mucous Cyst or Mucocele
It is found in the soft areas of your mouth, the inner cheek, lip, or tongue. Such bumps on gums are due to trauma to the soft tissues.
Dentigerous Cyst
A dentigerous cyst erupts around the area where the tooth cannot completely grow, so the fluid accumulates between the enamel layers by the crown.
Periapical or Radicular Cyst
This cyst is found at the base of the tooth near the gums due to pulp infection or nerve death. Periapical cysts transform into gum abscesses.
Symptoms To Look Out For
Sometimes when no infection is involved, these popped-up cysts do not show any symptoms of its presence at all.
However, when it grows to a bigger size, some symptoms include:
- Pressure
- Pain
- Inflammation
- Redness
If the cyst exists in your oral mucosal tissues, it may look like a sore or blister. As a result, you may ignore it unless it develops to a point when it can be felt.
Treatment
The treatment plan differs based on the severity of your condition (size and location). In case the protrusion is small, your dentist can easily perform surgical removal without damaging the tissues in the surrounding.
On the other hand, they may go for a surgical technique known as marsupialization which includes cutting the cyst open to drain the fluid and stitching the laceration.
A root canal treatment may be required for teeth that the formation of an oral cyst has irreversibly damaged.
We usually recommend getting a CT scan of the mouth before deciding on a treatment plan for a dental cyst so your dentist can get a good picture of the condition and establish an appropriate treatment plan.
Closing Note
You can always contact professionals from Lone Star Dental to help you determine what the bump or lump growing on your gums means. Let our periodontist take charge and help you pull through. Connect with us via call at (281) 233-0333 for more information on this matter.