COSMETIC PERIODONTAL SURGERY MISSISSAUGA
If you want to change the appearance of your smile, you need to see the plastic surgeons of dentistry – Periodontists! Often, when addressing health issues with your teeth, bones, or gums, the resolution leaves you with a more beautiful smile. But even those with a healthy mouth may want to alter the look of their smile. There are a number of common periodontal plastic surgery procedures that will return your mouth to a health state and make your smile as beautiful as you envision.
GUM RECESSION
Gum recession can be caused by a variety of issues, including periodontal disease. When the gum line recedes, it may expose root surfaces, which can be sensitive and unsightly. Often this recession leaves the appearance of long teeth. If a patient is unhappy with look of their smile due to gum recession, they can opt for Gum Graft surgery. Surgical intervention will cover the exposed roots and protect them from decay, while also reducing the risk of future gum recession. It will also normalize the appearance of the tooth, which improves the symmetry of your smile.
GUM GRAFTING
Gum Grafting is a common cosmetic procedure to cover unsightly or sensitive tooth roots, protect those roots from decay, and reduce the risk of further gum recession. During grafting surgery, gum tissue is extracted from the patient’s palate (or similar source) and used to cover the exposed root. The procedure can be implemented on multiple teeth to straighten an uneven gum line, or it can be used for just one single trouble tooth. Afterwards the patient is left with a healthier, less sensitive mouth, and a beautiful smile.
GUM AND JAWBONE INDENTATIONS
Indentations along the gums and jawbone can occur after tooth loss. When there is no longer a tooth in place, the jawbone and gums recede, causing an indentation. If left alone, the indentation may become unsightly. If the site receives a replacement tooth after the indentation has taken place, the tooth will look long in comparison to the surrounding teeth. Gum Grafting alone may not be enough to repair an indented area of jawbone.
RIDGE AUGMENTATION & PRESERVATION
Where Gum Grafting alone will not suffice, especially in an area of bone recession requiring a replacement tooth, Ridge Augmentation or Ridge Preservation procedures are necessary. These processes utilize Bone Grafting to build up the ridge bone to a density capable of stabilizing an implant. Building up the bone will help fill in the original indentation, as will the implementation of a replacement tooth in the strong new ridge bone foundation.
CROWN LENGTHENING – COSMETIC
Some people have the opposite issue to gum recession – too much gum tissue! Referred to as a “gummy smile”, a smile with a high gum to tooth ratio can either be the result of small teeth (short teeth), or normal-sized teeth with overgrown gums. The solution is a Cosmetic Crown Lengthening procedure, where excess gum tissue is removed. Removing some of the gum makes the crown of the tooth more visible, making teeth look longer. The procedure can be used for a stand alone tooth, or across the entire gum line to sculpt an entirely new and beautiful smile.
CROWN LENGTHENING – FUNCTIONAL
In some instances, Crown Lengthening procedures need to happen before a restorative or cosmetic dental procedure can be performed. There may be tooth decay below the gum line, the tooth may have fractured below the gum line, or the tooth may be too short for restorative procedures like crowns, bridges, and fillings. Crown Lengthening will adjust the gum line to a level that exposes parts of the tooth that need repair. With enough room for correction, the periodontist can ensure new crowns will not come loose in the future. The increased accessibility to the tooth also allows the patient to ensure the restoration area is cleaned properly, protecting about further damage and future periodontal diseases.
FRENECTOMY
Some patients have a large frenum under their tongue or on the inside of their lip. The frenum is a band of muscle tissue connected to the lip, cheek, or tongue. If the band is too big, it prevents proper use of the tongue which impairs speech (a condition known as Tongue Tie or Ankyloglossia). In other cases, children that have recently had their permanent upper teeth breakthrough, can develop a frenum attached between the two upper front teeth. The procedure for removing or loosening a frenum is a simple surgery performed under anesthetic.
