Our Blog
02
Feb
Gum Graft Can Help Cover Dental Implants
One of the reasons why people choose dental implants is that they look very attractive–they’re essentially indistinguishable from natural teeth, but only when the root part of the implant is fully covered. Unfortunately, some people may experience receding gums around their dental implants, exposing the roots.
When that happens, a gum graft can help restore the attractive appearance of your implants.
What Causes Recession?
What makes your gums recede around your implants? The most common cause of receding gums, whether around dental implants or natural teeth is gum disease. Gum disease can affect your implants as well as your teeth, so it’s important to properly brush, floss, and make regular visits to the dentist after receiving your implant or implants. And it should be noted that it may not just be the gums that are receding. There may be loss of underlying bone, leading to the recession of the gums on top of the bone as well.
Receding gums may also be caused by too aggressive brushing and flossing. Gum tissue doesn’t always bond to the dental implant as well as it bonds to your natural teeth, so if you’re brushing and flossing too hard, it can cause gums to recede. Be a little gentler on your gums after you get implants.
Cheek and tongue piercings can also cause a recession, as well as damage your implant, so it’s a good idea to stop wearing them when you have implants.
First, Save the Implant
Our first concern is making sure that receding gums are not a sign that your dental implant is in danger. We will treat gum disease as necessary and check to make sure that you still have the good bone height to anchor your dental implants. If the implant is failing, we may have to remove it, allow for healing to restore bone, then place new implants.
Ensuring Attractive Results
A gum graft can be used to restore lost tissue around dental implants. Other gum rejuvenation techniques that you may have heard about do not work with dental implants, but gum graft has a long tradition of being used in concert with dental implant procedures to ensure attractive results.
We might also recommend metal-free zirconia dental implants, which look like your natural teeth so you don’t have to worry as much about whether your implants show a little bit, either because of receding gums or just showing through your gums.
To learn more about getting the best-looking dental implants in Beverly Hills, even if you have receding gums, please call (310) 275-5325 for an appointment at Nicolas A. Ravon, DDS, MSD today.