When it comes to preserving teeth, combatting chronic gum disease, or even smile makeovers, periodontal surgery is a common option. However, periodontal surgery is less familiar than other types of oral surgery, simply because it’s used for selective needs and purposes.
Periodontal surgery improves the health, integrity, and appearance of your smile by improving the attachment level and appearance of the soft tissues surrounding your teeth. This procedure, like many oral surgeries, often involves adjusting the soft tissues throughout your mouth to better your overall oral health.
Comprehensive Periodontal Surgery
Our Suffolk County dentists use a combination of treatment methods and techniques, depending on your specific dental concern. As a multispecialty general dentistry clinic, we can typically perform all periodontal surgeries here in our office, rather than refer you to an offsite periodontal expert.
Here are just some of the types of periodontal surgeries are available at our Long Island practice:
Gum Flap Surgery on Periodontal Patients
Occasionally we cannot reach the roots of teeth to treat aggressive gum disease because of the extent of the infection. Root planing is a more intensive procedure than regular dental cleanings. As such, the procedure may sometimes involve retraction of the gum tissue in order to remove tartar deep under the gums, built up against the roots of teeth. After this procedure is complete, the gingiva (gum tissues) will be sutured back around the teeth.
Gum flap surgery is usually limited to more aggressive cases of periodontal disease. It’s frequently combined with crown lengthening or pocket reduction surgery. In most cases, moderate periodontal disease can be managed with a series of deep cleanings. But when severe infection occurs, we may not see the level of improvement that we’re hoping for without physically retracting the gingival and directly accessing the affected tooth structures.
Soft Tissue Grafting (Gingival Augmentation)
Gum grafts involve the transfer of soft tissue from one location of your mouth, or a donor, to another area of your mouth to cover exposed root surfaces where the gums have receded. Grafting is a form of periodontal surgery used to reinforce and protect teeth, reducing your risk of tooth loss and root-surface cavities. It also serves a cosmetic purpose, as it adjusts the gum levels for better coverage over the teeth.
Soft tissue grafts cover delicate, infection-prone surfaces to help you get the most out of your natural smile. They also help reduce sensitivity!
Gingival grafts are probably one of the most common types of soft tissue surgeries that we offer at Sachem Dental Group, along with crown lengthening and other types of periodontal therapy.
Dental Bone Grafting (for Resorption Around Periodontal Sites)
In addition to healthy gums, our teeth are supported by underlying bone tissue. But bone loss—caused by things like periodontal disease, tooth loss, or extensive denture wear—can compromise the integrity of other teeth, not to mention change your facial profile.
Bone grafting—also called ridge augmentation—is a method of rebuilding the missing bone tissue in your jaw. Sometimes, graft material can be placed right after dental extractions (as in socket preservation or with a sinus lift). A bone graft can be natural or synthetic, triggering new bone growth and fusion in that area, and increasing the density of your jaw.
Or our Long Island dentists can perform a stand-alone procedure called ridge augmentation. This is usually done a few months before implant surgery, to improve the fit of your denture, or to reinforce at-risk teeth recovering from periodontal disease.
Pocket Reduction and Crown Lengthening in Areas of Periodontal Disease
Crown lengthening is a soft tissue procedure which adjusts the gumlines in order to expose more of your tooth structure. This procedure can be used both for aesthetic and therapeutic purposes (e.g., if you have a worn or shorter tooth that needs a crown but only a small amount of tooth is visible). Crown lengthening can also be used when it is more difficult to maintain periodontal health due to excess infection. By shortening the height of the gum tissues, periodontal pockets become shallower and easier to care for at home.
Cosmetic crown lengthening, sometimes called “gum recontouring,” or a “gingivectomy,” is a slightly different procedure. It involves reducing the gum height strictly for cosmetic purposes, allowing more of the tooth to be visible whenever you smile. This can be helpful if you have a gummy smile or uneven gumlines that detract from your appearance.
What to Expect During Periodontal Surgery
As with any restorative procedure or oral surgery, our Long Island dentists will thoroughly numb your gum tissues prior to performing a periodontal surgery. The teeth in those areas are also usually numbed. The local anesthetic usually lasts for a few hours at a time, so you won’t have to feel a thing. Sedation dentistry is also available if you prefer a little extra help relaxing throughout your appointment.
Once your procedure is complete, we will provide you with written home care instructions about what to do for the first day and week following your periodontal surgery. Depending on the type of surgical procedure completed, this may vary from one person to the next.
Usually, you will want to avoid hot, crunchy foods for the first several days. Caffeine and alcohol should also be avoided. For the first day, plan to keep your head elevated and apply a cold compress to that side of your mouth, on and off every 20 minutes. If you have chronic periodontal disease, an antibiotic may also be prescribed to improve your recovery after the flap surgery. As always, take all medications as directed. If you have any trouble or concerns, contact our Long Island dentists right away.
Thankfully, gum tissues heal quite quickly. Usually within 7-10 days. Rinsing with warm saltwater and taking an anti-inflammatory such as Motrin (ibuprofen) can be helpful in managing post-operative discomfort for the first few days.
Gum Surgery in Suffolk County
If you have questions or concerns about periodontal surgeries like crown lengthening, flap surgery, or similar treatments, call Sachem Dental Group today.