Gum Contouring | Nottingham Dental
Gum Contouring is a procedure in which the dentist removes or carves gum tissues from your gums and teeth. In this article, we discuss gum contouring at Nottingham Dental.
In This Article
Do you have a gummy smile? Come into Nottingham Dental to see if gum contouring may be right for you. Book now!
Several factors contribute to a perfect smile. The quality of your gums is just as important as having straight white teeth when it comes to a brilliant smile. While most people focus on the quality of their teeth, it’s also important to consider the quality of your gums. Some people aren’t comfortable with their smile because their gums are too prominent, too dense, or perhaps they’re unattractive because of a history of gum disease. This distracts from an otherwise pleasant smile, leading to self-consciousness.
If you want to achieve the perfect smile, you need to frame it with even and healthy pink gums. That’s where gum contouring comes in. This is a simple procedure with which your dentist uses a laser or scalpel to contour and carve out your gums so they look natural. Nottingham Dental is one of the best dental clinics in Katy for cosmetic dentistry services and we can contour your gums perfectly to give you a complete smile makeover. Please continue reading for a detailed discussion of gum contouring.
At Nottingham Dental we use some of the most modern technology available. Speak to our highly skilled dentist about laser gum contouring today.
What is Gum Contouring?
Gum Contouring is a procedure in which the dentist removes or carves gum tissues from your gums and teeth. This may be done for either cosmetic or medical purposes. If you’re suffering from gum disease, the dentist will have to contour your gums to remove the diseased gum tissues. This procedure is also done for cosmetic purposes to enhance the aesthetic appeal of your gums and beautify your smile.
Cosmetic dentistry gum contouring may be a solution for your gummy smile. Schedule your dentist appointment today!
Why do you Get Gum Contouring Done?
Gum contouring is done for medical or cosmetic reasons. The following is a brief explanation of why you may need to get gum contouring done.
Gum Disease
Gum contouring, also known as gingivectomy, is done to treat gum disease or periodontitis. This is a condition in which plaque and tartar accumulate in your teeth and gum line, thus leading to bacterial infection. Once the bacteria infect your gums, you suffer from issues like bleeding gums and receding gum line. If you don’t treat periodontitis, it continues spreading and infects your bones, necessitating surgeries and possible tooth extraction. During the procedure, the dentist removes all of the infected gum tissues to prevent the disease from spreading. The dentist also cleans your teeth and gums and treats them with fluoride to prevent bacterial infection.
Cosmetic Dentistry
Your gums may look deformed or unappealing for various reasons — maybe they’re decayed because of gum disease, maybe they’re too wide, thick, or protruding. Perhaps you have a “gummy” smile, which leads to self-consciousness. Whatever the case may be, the dentist can contour and carve the gum tissues to ensure they’re perfectly even and aesthetic.
Are you looking for more information about our gum countouring procedure? Call us today and let us answer any questions you may have!
Gum Contouring Procedure
The following is an overview of the steps involved in the gum contouring procedure:
- The dentist studies your dental health to examine how much work needs to be done. The dentist will also clean your teeth thoroughly to remove all plaque and tartar before the procedure.
- The dentist will inject anesthesia into the gums so they’re numb throughout the procedure.
- Depending on the type of gum contouring, the dentist will either use a laser or a scalpel to remove the excess gum tissues.
- While contouring your gums, the dentist will also keep a suction device handy to remove all saliva so it doesn’t interfere with the procedure.
- The dentist will remove all the necessary gum tissues and shape the remaining gum tissues with a laser.
- After the treatment, your gums will be extremely sensitive so the dentist will apply a soft protective gel and bandages. This will protect your teeth from impurities.
Gum contouring is a minimally invasive procedure that concludes within an hour. However, that also depends on how much gum tissues the dentist has to remove and whether you’re also suffering from gum disease. Depending on the extent of the treatment, the dentist may conclude it either in a single sitting or through several sessions.
Gum Contouring Cost
The cost of a single gum contouring session ranges from $200 to $400 depending on the extent of gum contouring necessary. If you need it done on several teeth, you may also get a collective discount from the dentist. Gum contouring is a largely cosmetic procedure so it’s not covered by insurance.
Types of Gum Contouring
There are two types of gum contouring methods — tradition gum contouring and laser gum contouring.
- Tradition Gum Contouring: The dentist uses a scalpel to manually carve out the gum tissues.
- Laser Gum Contouring: The dentist uses the laser to contour the gums and cauterize the wound. This is safer than traditional gum contouring and your gums also heal faster.
Gum Contouring Recovery
The following are all the stages in the gum contouring recovery process:
- You experience considerable pain and discomfort after the anesthesia wears off, so you’ll need ibuprofen or other similar over-the-counter medications to manage the pain.
- You may experience consistent jaw pain for a few days and you’ll have to eat only soft foods and use cold compressors.
- Within a week, your gums will be healed and you’ll only experience occasional discomfort.
Are you unhappy with your gummy smile? Speak to our highly skilled dentist about cosmetic gum contouring. Book today!
Gingivectomy vs. Gingivoplasty
As we mentioned previously, gum contouring may be done for medical or cosmetic reasons. That’s where gingivectomy and gingivoplasty come in. The two terms are often used synonymously to refer to gum contouring. However, gingivectomy and gingivoplasty are slightly different.
Both gingivectomy and gingivoplasty involve the removal of gum tissues. However, gingivectomy removes the diseased gum tissues around a gum pocket, and gingivoplasty only reshapes the existing gum tissues. As such, gingivectomy is a medical procedure, while gingivoplasty is a cosmetic procedure.
However, in most cases, gingivoplasty is used in addition to gingivectomy to aesthetically shape the gum tissues after removal of the diseased tissues. Our dentist will advise you on the best procedure for your needs.
Benefits of Gingivectomy:
- The diseased gum tissue is removed, thus preventing gum disease from spreading further.
- Gingivectomy reduces the pocket of space between the gums and the tooth, thus tightening your tooth.
- Gingivectomy prevents gum disease from spreading further.
- Gingivectomy enables you to maintain optimal oral health.
- Gingivectomy also saves your teeth and bone.
- Gingivectomy is necessary for overall dental health.
Benefits of Gingivoplasty:
- Gingivoplasty can be used to deal with a gummy smile, i.e., when excessive gums are visible while smiling. The dentist will remove some of the excess gum tissues to ensure the optimal proportion of gum tissues and teeth while smiling.
- After the gingivectomy, your gum tissues will be damaged and uneven. As such, gingivoplasty may be necessary to smoothen and even out the remaining gum tissues, thereby restoring the aesthetic appearance of gum tissues after the disease.
- Gingivoplasty helps with uneven gingival contours.
- Gingivoplasty can also be used to remove the papillae, i.e., the gum tissues visible between teeth.
- Gingivoplasty also deals with exposed root surfaces.
- Reshaping the gum tissues to ensure your teeth have the perfect shape.
Schedule your gum contouring appointment today! We offer online booking for your convenience.
Schedule your Gum Contouring Appointment
Nottingham Dental is one of the best cosmetic dentistry clinic in Katy, TX for gum contouring and gingivectomy procedures. We thoroughly assess your teeth and gums and our expert dentists carefully carve your gums using lasers to give you a smile you can be proud of. For more information, please schedule your gum contouring appointment today.
