So, why do some people have gummy smiles?
Well; it could be caused by your gums covering more tooth area than it should,
making your teeth look too short - or it could be caused by a high lip line,
meaning that, when you smile, your upper lip pulls up higher than that of the
average person.
Patients generally come to me as a
periodontist to correct this for aesthetic reasons, but a good periodontist should also check if you have an improper bite. The reason for this is that, if
your gummy smile is a result of how your teeth erupted and/or how your jawbone
developed, these could impact on your long term oral health.
There are 3
different surgical procedures to correct a gummy smile, depending on the cause
in your particular case. Once we have ascertained what caused your problem, you
will only need a local anesthetic and you will not feel any pain during any of
the procedures.
If you only
have too much gum covering your crowns or teeth, a simple surgical sculpting
procedure called gingivectomy or
gingivoplasty will suffice. During this procedure I remove excess gum
tissue and perhaps a little bone so that more tooth surface is exposed and the
gum line is more even. It is a minimally invasive procedure so I will often
place a periodontal dressing over the teeth and gums to protect them.
When it is
evident that I will have to expose and remove some underlying tooth bone too, I
will opt for flap surgery. This
procedure will be chosen if your teeth are naturally short, are quite worn or
the bone right under the top of the gums is thick. I will then cut the gum
open, do what needs to be done, put some stitches in to ensure it heals
perfectly and you will also need a periodontal dressing. This procedure
involves a little more pain than with a gingivectomy.
At Anthem Periodontics and Dental Implants, we will look at YOUR individual needs and only do those procedures necessary to give you a great smile!
