Family traits are often a mixture of good and bad for all of us. Along with the color of your eyes and your quirky sense of humor, you may have also inherited a few things that you aren’t as happy about! If a “gummy” smile is one of those things, there’s a simple procedure called gum reshaping and contouring that can give you what your DNA didn’t: a smile you love. You may have assumed that nothing could be done about the size and shape of your gums, but thanks to modern dentistry the solution is easier than you might think! If you’d like to know more, keep reading as your dentist in Summerlin talks about who can benefit from this procedure and what you can expect.
Who Needs Gum Reshaping and Contouring?
In addition to heredity, there are other reasons that your dentist may have recommended this procedure.
There are several medications that have the side effect of making the gum tissue grow and expand. In severe cases, the gums can actually begin to grow over the teeth, hiding them from view.
Gum recession is another potential cause of an uneven gumline. As the gumline “pulls back” it exposes the root and results in the teeth appearing longer than all the others.
Regardless of the reason, gum reshaping is a wonderful solution for gum tissue that hides or exposes too much of the tooth structure. It can really lengthen the appearance of teeth that appear smaller than they actually are, restoring a beautiful, even shape.
If you feel that your gums are the dominant feature of your smile, you may feel self-conscious every you smile or laugh. That’s no way to go through life!
The good news is that anyone who is unhappy with the size or shape of their gums can be helped by this procedure.
What Can You Expect?
Gum reshaping is one of those procedures where advances in modern dentistry really shine. What would have been significantly more difficult just 20 years ago is easy and relatively painless today.
What accounts for the change? Lasers. With the use of laser-assisted dental techniques, your dentist in Summerlin can shape your gums with minimal discomfort and downtime. You’ll be amazed at how quickly your gum tissue heals.
For the first step, your dentist will make sure you’re numb. This will be similar to the numbing that you get prior to having a cavity filled.
Next, the laser will gently remove the excess gum tissue and seal off the area at the same time, so you’ll experience minimal pain and bleeding.
You’ll be given post-operative instructions, which will include how to gently keep the newly shaped gums clean while they’re healing.
Since the recovery time is relatively fast, you’ll be able to flash your new pearly whites in no time!
About the Author
Dr. Pamela J. West is an award-winning general, restorative and cosmetic dentist who understands the impact that a beautiful smile can have on her patient’s lives. She is a perfectionist when it comes to results, and loves how relatively small procedures like gum contouring can offer dramatic changes in appearance. She can be reached for questions through her website or at (702) 240-0404.