You may need surgery for severe gum disease (periodontitis) if it cannot be cured with antibiotics or root planning and scaling.
Before and After picture
What are advanced gum procedures?
These are surgical procedures performed on the gums to re-establish the healthy state of your gums. They include procedures like
- Flap surgeries
- Gingivectomy
- curettage
Why is a flap surgery done?
The flap procedure is necessary when severe gum disease (periodontitis) has damaged the bones that support your teeth.
What is a flap procedure?
A flap procedure cleans the roots of a tooth and repairs bone damage caused by gum disease. A gum specialist (periodontist) performs the procedure.
Before the procedure, you will be given a local anesthetic to numb (freeze) the area where the doctor will work on your gums.
The doctor will pull back a section of your gums to clean the roots of your teeth and repair damaged bone, if needed. The gum flap will be sewed back into place and covered with gauze to stop the bleeding.
Bone may be:
- Smoothed and reshaped so that plaque has fewer places to grow.
- Repaired (grafted) with bone from another part of the body or with man-made materials. The doctor may place a lining on the bone graft to help the bone grow back. The lining may need to be removed later.
What is Gingivectomy?
Gingivectomy is surgical removal of the gum tissue. This procedure may be carried out surgically or with the help recent technological advances like laser or electrocautery.
- Bleeding- free working environment
- No local anaesthesia is required
- Post-operative pain is minimal
- Faster healing
- Removal of fibrous or edematous enlargements of gingival
- Eliminations of supra alveolar pockets and pseudo pockets
- For esthetic purpose [where crown length is decreased
- Creation of bilateral symmetry
What is Gingival Curettage?
When a case of Periodontitis or gum disease results in shallow periodontal pockets than Gingival Curettage is advised, Gingival curettage involves deep cleaning & removal of tartar and bacterial Plaque from the gingival pockets.
This Procedure can be performed either manually with a special instrument under local anesthesia or with Lasers, while using lasers Anesthesia Injection is not required
Gingival Curettage is a procedure that improves the stability of the teeth and the health of the gums.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Typically it takes only a few days to recover from a flap procedure. Be sure to follow the home care instructions that your dentist gives you. If you have questions about your instructions, call us @ 9764267351
The following are general suggestions to help speed recovery:
- Take painkillers as prescribed.
- After 24 hours, you can rinse your mouth gently with warm salt water several times a day to reduce swelling and relieve pain.
- Change gauze pads before they become soaked with blood.
- Relax after surgery. Strenuous physical activity may increase bleeding.
- Eat soft foods such as dal, rice, curd,pudding, or light soup. Gradually add solid foods to your diet as the area heals.
- Do not lie flat. This may prolong bleeding. Prop up your head with pillows.
- Avoid spitting for the first 24 hrs
- Continue to carefully brush your teeth and tongue.
- Apply an ice or cold pack to the outside of your mouth to help relieve pain and swelling.
- Do not use sucking motions, such as when using a straw to drink.
- Do not smoke or consume alcohol
A few days after the procedure, your dentist will remove the stitches.
If you maintain good dental care after the surgery, the flap procedure should allow you to clean your teeth and gums better. Your gums should become pink and healthy again
The roots of your teeth may become more sensitive.
The contour or shape of your gums may change.
Gum surgery can introduce harmful bacteria into the bloodstream. Gum tissue is also at risk of infection. Therefore, we prescribe antibiotics before and after surgery.
If you have a systemic health condition that puts you at high risk for a severe infection or if infections are particularly dangerous for you must inform the dentist well in advance.
You may need to take antibiotics if you:
- Have certain heart problems that make it dangerous for you to get a heart infection called endocarditis.
- Have an impaired immune system.
- Had recent major surgeries or have man-made body parts, such as an artificial hip or heart valve.
A flap procedure is often needed to save teeth that are supported by a bone damaged by gum disease.
- Gum disease usually will come back if you do not brush and floss regularly after surgery.
- To promote healing, stop all use of tobacco. Smoking or using spit tobacco decreases your ability to fight infection of your gums and delays healing. To learn more, see the topic Quitting Smoking.
- You will need to see your dentist regularly so that he or she can follow your progress. If your gum disease spreads, you may lose teeth.