To take this one step further and in a different direction, consider the poor financial health of our nation. Cardiovascular disease health care cost to our country is currently at $315 billion per year. A person with heart disease can decrease this cost simply by having his or her gum disease treated. Periodontal Disease treatment reduces hospital admissions and lowers medical costs by $5168 per stroke patient per year and $1090 per heart disease patient per year (4). And 80-90% of heart disease can be prevented with healthy lifestyle changes including getting your mouth healthy (3). You might also think of Total Wellness Dentistry as Totally Patriotic Dentistry!