We find out which bacteria you actually have.

Why identify the bacteria at all?

Gum disease is a bacterial infection, and not all of these bacteria behave the same way. Some sit harmlessly in a healthy mouth. Others are tissue-destructive, are associated with deep pockets and bleeding, and turn up in research on inflammation elsewhere in the body. Two patients with similar-looking gums can carry very different organisms — and need very different care.

Knowing which ones you carry changes how often you should be seen, whether standard cleaning is enough, and how urgently we act. It also gives us something measurable: we can treat, retest, and see whether it worked.

How it works

1. 01

   We look, live, at your visit

   We take a small sample of your plaque and put it under our phase contrast microscope while you watch. You see your own bacteria moving on the screen. For most patients this is the whole conversation — the picture is reassuring, and we move on.

2. 02

   If the picture warrants it, we identify exactly what is there

   When the in-office look shows moderate or high risk, we send a saliva sample to Fida Labs for a comprehensive oral pathogen panel. It reports which specific species are present and at what levels — the gum-disease organisms and the decay-causing ones — rather than leaving us to infer it.

3. 03

   The result changes the plan

   Results come back as an overall risk level plus the specific organisms that are elevated. That drives real decisions: how often you should be seen, whether targeted treatment is warranted rather than a standard cleaning, and what we should be watching after treatment.

4. 04

   We retest to see whether it worked

   The point of measuring is to measure again. Retesting after treatment tells us whether the bacterial load actually came down, instead of assuming it did — and gives your physician something concrete if we are co-managing your care.

Salivary testing is not something we run on everyone. We add it when the in-office result shows moderate or high risk, so the extra step is guided by your actual findings.

Some of what the panel looks for

The panel covers a broad set of gum-disease organisms and the acid-producing bacteria behind tooth decay. These are a few whose systemic associations are best documented in the research literature:

Porphyromonas gingivalis

The keystone pathogen of gum disease — it disrupts the immune response and is strongly associated with pocket depth and severity. Studied in relation to the heart, the brain, blood sugar, and pregnancy outcomes. See the research →

Tannerella forsythia & Treponema denticola

Tissue-destructive organisms that turn up in chronic and aggressive gum disease, and in deep pockets that bleed. Most consistently linked in research to cardiovascular health. See the research →

Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans

Associated with rapid attachment loss, sometimes in patients far younger than you would expect. A finding we act on at any level, because of how quickly it can move. See the research →

Fusobacterium nucleatum

A bridging organism — it helps other bacteria bind together into a mature, harder-to-disrupt biofilm. Studied alongside pregnancy and gastrointestinal outcomes. See the research →

Streptococcus mutans & Streptococcus sobrinus

The principal acid-producing drivers of tooth decay. One strain also binds collagen, which is why decay risk and heart health occasionally intersect. The cavity side of the panel, which matters most for children and for adults with recurring decay. See the research →

Research describes these as associations, and the strength of the evidence differs from one organism and condition to the next. Carrying a given bacterium does not mean you have, or will develop, any systemic condition. What it means is that you have a treatable oral infection worth controlling — which is the part within reach.

What we do with the result

We go through the report with you and explain what is elevated and why it matters for your situation. Your plan follows from it: the recall interval your biology actually needs rather than a default six months, treatment aimed at what is present, home care matched to your risk, and a retest to confirm the picture changed.

If you are managing a condition like diabetes or cardiovascular disease, and you would like us to, we can share what we find with your physician — see how we work with physicians. Specific treatment decisions, including any prescription, are made in the operatory with your full health history in front of us. They are not something to read off a web page.