Gum Contouring

Fixing a Gummy Smile with a Gum Lift

Cosmetic Dentistry can take many shapes and forms, and it is so important for you to find a cosmetic dentist who knows about all the options, not just teeth whitening and veneers. Sometimes those are the wrong thing, and that’s especially true for patients with a gummy smile. In the patient here, it was a “gum lift”, or periodontal plastic surgery.

Sometimes Teeth Look Short Because of Too Much Gum Covering Them

Mia first came to my office in March 2007 to ask if Porcelain Veneers could give her the smile she’d always wanted. Her complaint was that her teeth were too short and square, and she hoped that veneers could make them longer. However, the problem was NOT that her teeth were too short; the problem was that she had too much gum COVERING her teeth, making them appear shorter than they really were.

Mia’s Smile Before the Gum Lift

Don’t Put Crowns Close to Bone, or What is Biologic-Width Invasion?

Mia also had old dental crowns and bridges in need of replacement. Twenty years ago, her dentist put the edges very far under the gum and too close to the bone. When that happens, your body thinks it’s a foreign object and tries to get rid of it, but can’t, so the gums get irritated, sore, and red – no matter how much your brush and floss. When a crown edge is too close to bone, we call it a biologic width invasion.

Cosmetic Gum Surgery, or a “Gum Lift”

After plenty of consultation, Mia decided to go with the corrective gum surgery. The technical name is “Esthetic Crown Lengthening,” which simply means that we are making the teeth look prettier by making them look longer. She told us beforehand that she felt very nervous, but afterwards said that it was much easier and less uncomfortable than she’d expected, and her healing was much easier than she’d thought. Usually the only discomfort is some gum soreness for 7-10 days.

Mia’s Smile After the Gum Lift

Mia tells us she is simply THRILLED with her smile now, and it’s easy to see why!

Convenient Charlotte Dental Care

For Mia, one of the best parts of the whole treatment was that we were able to do everything right here at Smiles by Payet Dentistry, with no need to refer her to a specialist. I really loved giving Mia the smile that she’d always wanted, with no unnecessary drilling for porcelain veneers that would not have solved her problem in the first place. We did also replace her old crowns and bridge on the upper right, and with the excess gum tissue removed there, too, now she has no problems keeping the area clean, and her gums don’t bleed when she brushes or flossing.