If your dentist has recommended a crown lengthening procedure from a periodontist, you are not alone. While many people haven’t heard of crown lengthening before, it is a common treatment and can be done as a pre-treatment to having a dental restoration done.
Crown lengthening can take care of a problem where you might have an excess gingival display or a gummy smile. This means your teeth look as if they are too short! But the problem isn’t usually the teeth – they may be just fine – but they look short because you have too much gum tissue partially covering the crown-making the tooth appear smaller than it is.
A dental crown lengthening can help if you have a tooth broken off at the gum line, a tooth that is too weak to support a dental restoration, or your dental crown (or filling) fell off, exposing tooth decay below it.
Having a dental crown lengthening is often done before placing a restorative crown or cosmetic dental treatment. If your tooth has extensive decay, is broken under the gum line, or doesn’t have enough structure left to support a dental crown or tooth bridge, a crown lengthening can fix this. During this procedure, our periodontist will reshape the extra gum and bone tissue to allow more of the tooth to be exposed, allowing the restorative dentist to prepare and place ac crown/ or crown bridge. We can perform this treatment on a single tooth, the gum line, or multiple teeth so that your smile looks natural and beautiful.
If you are unhappy with your smile because of gummy teeth, we invite you to call our office to schedule a visit with our periodontist about a crown lengthening treatment. We can help you create a beautiful, healthy-looking smile!