GUM GRAFTING
What is a gum recession?
Gum recession, also known as receding gum, is the retraction and resorption of the gingiva around a tooth. This loss of gum tissue exposes the root, making your tooth unattractive, more sensitive to cold, and more prone to develop caries. Gum recession is a very common problem in adults.
What are the causes of gum recession?
Several factors can cause recession but the most common ones are:
- Aggressive brushing
- Very thin or insufficient gingival tissue
- Gum disease
- Bad adaptation of crowns
- Abnormal tooth position
- Piercing in the lip or tongue that wears away the gum by rubbing against it.
- Inadequate brushing or flossing, which allows bacteria to build up between the teeth.
Note how the teeth look longer because of the gum recession
The level of gum is back to its original position after the gum graft
How is gum grafting gone?
The only region in the mouth where we can remove the tissue or gum is from the roof of the mouth or the palate. It will then be placed on the receding parts of the root and sutured. For patients that prefer not to take a graft from their palate, there are other alternatives where we use a processed and sterilized tissue known as Alloderm or a collagen membrane like the Mucograft. This way, we avoid doing a surgery on the palate. Through this procedure, multiple teeth can be treated at the same time.
Professor Hani Khoury and Doctor Jeff Khoury are the periodontists at Khoury Dental Clinic, who perform all the graft procedures.
With more than 35 years of experience, you can be confident that you will have the best long term result.
