Periodontal Surgery - Soft Tissue Grafts

Periodontal procedures stop further dental problems and gum recession, and can to improve the aesthetics of your gum line.

Exposed tooth roots are the result of gum recession. You may wish to enhance your smile by covering one or more of these roots that make your teeth appear too long. Or the exposed roots may be very sensitive to hot or cold foods and liquids.

Before tissue graft After tissue graft

Your gums may have receded for a variety of reasons, including aggressive tooth brushing or periodontal disease. You may not be in control of what caused the recession, but prior to treatment, we will help you identify the factors contributing to the problem. Once these contributing factors are controlled, a soft tissue graft procedure will help repair the defect and help prevent additional recession and bone loss.

Soft tissue grafts can be used to cover roots or develop gum tissue that is absent due to excessive gingival recession. This procedure can reduce further recession and bone loss, and in some cases it can cover exposed roots to protect them from decay. This may reduce tooth sensitivity and improve the aesthetics of your smile.

Procedure

During this procedure, we take gum tissue from your palate or another donor source to cover the exposed root. This can be done for one tooth or several teeth to even your gum line and reduce sensitivity. There are different types of grafts that can be done: connective tissue grafting, gingival grafting and pedicle grafting. Your periodontist can tell you which graft best suits your situation.

Gum Grafting Overview

For a brief narrated overview of the gum grafting process, please click the button to the right. It will launch our flash educational MiniModule in a separate window that may answer some of your questions about gum grafting.

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