How can a gummy smile affect us?

During the day I receive a lot of visits to my medical consultation. Each patient presents always a different clinical case. Moreover, after holidays the amount of appointments always increases. During the summer time our day a day routine usually changes in our oral health. A lot of people take the advantage of being back to normality after holidays to get a dental revision or to ask for information or even to try by themselves how it feels to smile freely. Along the last years I have received patients worried about what is nominated gummy smile, it means that when you smile, you show more gum than what is considered normal. Showing too much gum is, for so many patients, something that has to be fixed as soon as possible.

In general, the amount of gum showed when smiling, can be different: low smile line, it is, a non-forced smile where there is no gum showing, medium line smile when we show 3mm or less gum. And last, high or gummy smile, that occurs when during a non-forced smile we show more than 3mm of gum. The solution in these cases is a gingivectomy, a local surgery in the area to reshape the gummy margins and create a harmonic smile with the face, beautiful and symmetric. This way, it is possible to eliminate or reduce the periodontal bag, it means, the gap in between tooth and gum.

In the origin of the gummy smile there are so many factors playing, dental, skeletal and soft tissues. Such as:

• Hyperactive lip muscles: which provokes the lip to go up more than usual when smiling, showing more gum.
• Upper or maxillary teeth in a prominent position.
• The excessive wear of the teeth thatmakes them shorter so they look too short against the gum.

The gummy smile is a pathology that can have negative repercussions in a person, affecting the beauty of the facial expression and the self-steem. It is one of the most common alterations, around the 27% of the population suffer this problem and it predominates more in adults. The technology and innovation in odontology or the new reparation techniques have made health and aesthetics play a role together bringing the best quality and safety. The gingivectomy can also go along with other treatments like porcelain veneers or crown lengthening.

The gingivectomy is a surgery very predictable and for this reason it is difficult to have any complication. Moreover, there aren’t important contraindications to prohibit a patient to go through this aesthetic intervention, and its results are highly visible and satisfactory even in the short term to create a beautiful smile adapted to your personality and your emotional wellness.