Many people may not realize it, but proportionate, healthy gums are just as important to a beautiful smile as straight, white teeth are. If you have too much or too little gum tissue, your smile’s aesthetics will suffer. Similarly, gums that are too dark can detract from a beautiful smile, as well. Fortunately, patients who have such issues can benefit from cosmetic dental surgery to correct the problem.
In the case of a “gummy smile,” or excess gum tissue, a procedure known as crown lengthening can improve the smile’s appearance. With this intervention, the periodontist will remove gum tissue that is covering up a portion of the tooth’s crown. It may be necessary to remove and/or contour some bone in order to expose more of the crown, as well.
A crown lengthening procedure can be performed on a single tooth or multiple teeth, as necessary.
Gum recession is on the other end of the spectrum, and cosmetic dental surgery can be a useful treatment in these cases, as well. When the gums have receded, the teeth look unusually long, which can age a patient’s appearance. The sensitive roots of the teeth may also be exposed by gum recession.
For gum recession, the periodontist will transplant donor tissue, which can come from the patient, other human donors or animal donors, at the site of insufficient gum tissue. If there is no need to cover up a tooth’s root, a state-of-the-art cell based therapy called Gintuit™ offers a less invasive solution to the problem. This approach uses regeneration to create new gum tissue.
Hyper-pigmented gums, which are darker than normal, also present a problem for the smile’s appearance. Gum bleaching, a non-invasive treatment that uses lasers, can help gums achieve a healthy pinkish hue, either throughout the tissue or in darkened spots.
If unattractive gums are cramping your smile’s style, they can be corrected through various types of gum surgery and other treatments. The interventions are tailored to your unique needs, so contact our team at PerioNYC to learn more about your treatment options and schedule a consultation.
