The gums are an extremely important part of your mouth that many people take for granted. It’s true that healthy teeth is important, but the gums can make a lot of difference in terms of dental health and dental aesthetics. When you meet with a skilled Scottsdale oral surgeon to discuss an issue related to the soft tissues in the mouth, we will be sure to listen to you and offer the best advice for solid dental care going forward.
One treatment option that may be helpful to some patients is dental crown lengthening. We’d like to take a moment to focus on this treatment right now.
What is dental crown lengthening?
Dental crown lengthening is a procedure that is performed to remove gum tissue from around a tooth in order to expose more of the tooth structure.
Why is dental crown lengthening necessary?
Both dental health and dental aesthetics play a part in determining if dental crown lengthening is the right option for a patient. In terms of dental health, dental crown lengthening is an ideal option if a patient has tooth decay below the gumline. In terms of dental aesthetics, dental crown lengthening is ideal if a patient has a smile in which the gums are more prominent than the teeth.
When you visit our oral surgery center in Scottsdale, AZ, we will discuss your candidacy for dental crown lengthening or any other viable treatments.
About Gum Disease
Gum disease is caused by the bacteria that naturally occurs in the mouth and also causes tooth decay. When a person has gum disease, the gum will recede from around the tooth, allowing bacteria to access spaces beneath the patient’s normal gumline. Tooth decay can develop beneath the gumline, requiring greater exposure of the tooth structure to treat properly.
About Gummy Smiles
Gummy smiles are smiles in which the gums are too prominent. In most cases, these sorts of smile are genetic, though health conditions have occasionally been known to result in changes to the gumline as well.
The Dental Crown Lengthening Procedure
The procedure will vary depending on the needs of the patient. In general, dental crown lengthening is performed under local anesthetic. The oral surgeon will carefully expose more of the tooth structure.
In aesthetic procedures, adjustments of the soft tissues will be all that is required. For treatments related to tooth decay, the soft tissues will be carefully peeled back to expose more of the crown and root of the tooth. At this point, the tooth decay will be carefully treated before the gum tissue is sutured back in place.
If gum tissue needs to be removed during this procedure at all, then soft tissue grafting will be used to help rebuild some of the missing gumline.
Learn More About Dental Health Treatments
For more information about crown lengthening as well as other important dental care treatments such as Scottsdale dental implants, we encourage you to contact our practice today. The entire team looks forward to meeting you in person and helping you attain optimal dental health while also allowing to achieve all of your aesthetic goals.
