Cosmetic Procedures
In addition to procedures to treat periodontal disease, many periodontists also perform cosmetic procedures to enhance your smile. Oftentimes, patients who pursue cosmetic procedures notice improved function as well. Cosmetic procedures include:
• Crown lenthening
• Soft Tissue Grafts
• Ridge Augmentation
Ask a periodontist near you for a smile consultation. He or she can evaluate your smile and provide a range of treatments available to help achieve the look you want.
Crown lengthening to treat gum disease
During this procedure, excess gum and bone tissue is reshaped to expose more of the natural tooth.You may have asked your periodontist about procedures to improve a "gummy" smile because your teeth appear short. Your teeth may actually be the proper lengths, but they're covered with too much gum tissue. To correct this, your periodontist performs crown lengthening. During this procedure, excess gum and bone tissue is reshaped to expose more of the natural tooth. This can be done to one tooth, to even your gum line, or to several teeth to expose a natural, broad smile.
Your dentist or periodontist may also recommend crown lengthening to make a restorative or cosmetic dental procedure possible. Perhaps your tooth is decayed, broken below the gum line, or has insufficient tooth structure for a restoration, such as a crown or bridge. Crown lengthening adjusts the gum and bone level to expose more of the tooth so it can be restored.
What are the benefits of this procedure?
Whether you have crown lengthening to improve function or esthetics, patients often receive the benefits of both: a beautiful new smile and improved periodontal health – your keys to smiling, eating and speaking with comfort and confidence.
Soft Tissue Grafts
Periodontal procedures are available to stop further dental problems and gum recession, and/or to improve the esthetics of your gum line.
Exposed tooth roots are the result of gum recession. Perhaps you wish to enhance your smile by covering one or more of these roots that make your teeth appear too long. Or, maybe you're not bothered by the appearance of these areas, but you cringe because the exposed roots are sensitive to hot or cold foods and liquids.
Your gums may have receded for a variety of reasons, including aggressive tooth brushing or periodontal disease. You may not be in control of what caused the recession, but prior to treatment your periodontist can help you identify the factors contributing to the problem. Once these contributing factors are controlled, a soft tissue graft procedure will repair the defect and help to prevent additional recession and bone loss.
Soft tissue grafts can be used to cover roots or develop gum tissue where absent due to excessive gingival recession. During this procedure, your periodontist takes gum tissue from your palate or another donor source to cover the exposed root. This can be done for one tooth or several teeth to even your gum line and reduce sensitivity.
What are the benefits of this procedure?
A soft tissue graft can reduce further recession and bone loss. In some cases, it can cover exposed roots to protect them from decay. This may reduce tooth sensitivity and improve esthetics of your smile. Whether you have crown lengthening to improve function or esthetics, patients often receive the benefits of both: a beautiful new smile and improved periodontal health – your keys to smiling, eating and speaking with comfort and confidence.
Ridge Augmentation
Sometimes when you lose one or more teeth, you can get an indention in your gums and jawbone where the tooth used to be. This happens because the jawbone recedes when it no longer is holding a tooth in place.
Not only is this indentation unnatural looking, it also causes the replacement tooth to look too long compared to the adjacent teeth.
A periodontist can fill in this "defect" with a procedure called ridge augmentation, recapturing the natural contour of your gums and jaw. A new tooth can then be created that is natural looking, easy-to-clean and beautiful.
