Crown lengthening

Crown lengthening is generally performed in order to improve the health of the gum tissue, or to prepare the mouth for restorative or cosmetic procedures.

• Esthetic Crown lengthening (gum lift): In some cases, the teeth look short and stubby and partly covered by gum tissue due to genetics or gingivitis. Excess gum tissue can easily be removed to reshape the outline of the gums, expose the natural tooth length, and provide a fuller, more attractive smile.
• The same procedure is also an excellent way to create a more aesthetic gum line for dental crowns and other restorative procedures. Crown lengthening exposes more of the natural tooth by reshaping or recontouring bone and gum tissue. This treatment can be performed on a single tooth, many teeth or the entire gum line, to expose a pleasant, aesthetically pleasing smile.

It can help patients who need to give their dentist more access to remove decay or to place a restoration on a structurally sound tooth.

This procedure allows the specialist to expose more tooth structure above the gums for restorative reasons. It is commonly done in cases where the extent of the decay on a tooth is too deep, when tooth fractures or crown/filling margin is placed too deep below the gums for the dentist to access. If the functional crown lengthening is not done in such cases the gingiva stays unhealthy and leads to early crown failure.

Similar to esthetic crown lengthening, the procedure involves recontouring the bone and gum tissue to a level that not only allows the dentist room to remove all decay and place a good, healthy restorative margin, but also keeps enough supporting bone around the tooth. The patients need to wait 6-8 weeks for healing of the gums. The gums take 6-8 weeks to become healthy and stable enough for the final restoration. After crown lengthening in esthetic situations e.g., front teeth with veneers and crowns, please be aware that it will take roughly 3 to 4 months before the gums are stable enough to proceed.