Have you ever heard the term dental crown lengthening? It sounds like a procedure to add height to a crown. Instead, it’s a procedure that aims at exposing more teeth by removing a part of the gums beneath a tooth or crown. If your Staten Island cosmetic dentist suggests a crown lengthening procedure, here’s what he or she means and what you can expect.

About Crown Lengthening

Crown lengthening is a dental procedure in which excess gum and bone tissue are removed to lengthen the visible part of your tooth. Your Staten Island cosmetic dentist may perform the surgery, but more often a periodontist, or a dentist with advanced training in the treatment of conditions that affect the gum tissues and supporting structures around the teeth, will perform the procedure.

Why Would You Need Crown Lengthening?

Your periodontist may need to perform crown lengthening procedure to allow a restorative dental procedure. For example, if you need a crown placed on a tooth that is badly broken off or decayed below or close to the gum line, this surgical procedure can expose more of the tooth so that it can support a large filling, crown or even dental bridge.

A crown lengthening procedure also creates enough space between the underlying bone and crown to prevent the crown from damaging the gums. If your teeth are prone to excessive decay, uncovering more of the surface of the teeth allows you to more easily keep them clean through proper brushing and flossing.

Crown lengthening can also be performed for aesthetic reasons. It is commonly done to correct what dentists call a “gummy smile.” A gummy smile is one in which excessive gum tissue encroaches on the upper teeth, making them look short in comparison to the gums. Removing the excess gum tissue makes the teeth appear longer. Crown lengthening can also correct an uneven gum line.

Crown lengthening to enable restorative procedures is usually done on only one or two teeth. If the procedure is being done for cosmetic reasons, it will typically involve several teeth or all the teeth along an entire gum line.