The only way……….

Gum disease is one of the leading causes of tooth loss after the age of 30. This is a progressive inflammatory disease that affects the gingival and the surrounding tissue around the teeth. It has been believed that 80% of the population above the age of 30 suffer from this disease with varying degrees of severity. If gum disease can no longer be cured with antibiotics, surgery may be needed to treat such condition. Periodontists often suggest cosmetic procedures as an addition to their gum disease treatment.

If gum disease worsens, the inflammation will spread to the supporting alveolar bone where minor bone loss and the formation of periodontal pockets, or food traps, occur. It will have an increased gingival recession, moderate to deep pockets, moderate to severe bone loss, and mobility of teeth due to the bone loss. There may even be increased mobility of teeth, movement of teeth out of position, and visible fistulas (boils) and pus. To solve this problem, one gets a well planned gum disease treatment to remove the bacteria that infects the mouth and then cosmetic surgery to correct the imperfections in the mouth.

Cosmetic surgery has become a popular choice for solving the effects of gum disease.  Gum recession is often the effect of gum disease where the tooth root becomes exposed making the teeth long longer and makes the person look older. Having exposed roots makes it unappealing and can leave a risk of developing cavities on the tooth root. Soft tissue grafts and other root coverage procedures are done to cover these exposed roots to reduce gum recession and protect the vulnerable roots from decay.

Tooth loss causes an indentation in the gums and the jawbone where the tooth used to be. This is because the jawbone recedes when it does not hold any tooth in place. This indentation makes the mouth so unnatural looking and it causes the replacement tooth to look longer than the adjacent teeth. Ridge augmentation is done as a gum disease treatment which fills in this defect, recapturing the natural contour of the gums and jaw. A natural looking new tooth will then be created to replace the one that was lost.

First impressions are everything to a person. Everyone wants to make a good first impression every time one meets someone, go for a job interview or a first date and dazzling them with that great smile. Whatever the reason, the periodontal cosmetic procedures can help knock the socks off of anyone who is given that perfect smile while boosting the individual’s confidence making them perform at their best.