The gums normally recede as a part of the normal eruption of the teeth. This is called "passive" eruption since the teeth aren't really moving or erupting, but the receeding of the gums creates the impression of active tooth movement. The teeth are usually not "too short", they are usually normally-sized.
Case1a
This 21 year old woman wanted her dentist to cap her teeth in order to make them longer. Her dentist referred her to the periodontist since her teeth weren’t too short, just covered over by excessive gum tissue.
Pre-Treatment
Following her orthodontic treatment, her orthodontist requests the surgical correction of her gummy smile
Post-Surgical
Minimally-invasive surgery has created a fuller and happier smile with minimal post-surgical inconvenience. Her teeth now show their normal size since they are not covered with excess gum tissue.
Pre-Treatment
Lip retraction shows the case with a better visualization of the short teeth.
Post-Surgical
The cosmetically-pleasing tooth appearances now reflect the form of her face and allow her normal tooth length and her smile to shine.
Case1b
This 24 year old woman has been unhappy with the amount of white teeth that are showing. While it appears that her teeth are short, they aren’t. She simply has too much gum tissue covering over what will be attractive teeth.
Pre-Treatment
The gum tissues are uneven and create the appearance of the gums growing over the teeth.
Post-Surgical
The teeth now have proper gum contours and she has a more attractive smile. However, note the uneveness of the edges of her front teeth.Tooth recontouring or reshaping needs to be done.
Post-Surgical
(After recontouring)
With only 1-2 minutes of reshaping the teeth, the attractive appearance of the smile is further improved
Case1c
This 15 year old female had several problems to address. She had enamel on her teeth that did not develop properly and you may notice on the photos that there are some white blotches on these teeth. Her dentist is planning a cosmetic improvement with laminate "facings" on the teeth but knows that the overgrown gums will interfere with getting a good cosmetic result. Her dentist desires that the overgrown gums be surgically recontoured and normal tooth lengths be created.
Pre-Treatment
The overgrown gums interefere with seeing the normal tooth length and form. She has irregularities on the enamel
surfaces and restorative facings are to be placed for a cosmetic enhancement. The gum surgery is required to expose enough
tooth to allow for the proper form and esthetics on the restorations.
Post-Surgical
The surgery has exposed a better tooth form and length. The
patient is now so pleased that she is not having the
restorations placed.
Case1d
This 16 year old female complained about her GUMMY SMILE and how it made her feel self-conscious about her smile in school.
Pre-Treatment
These teeth appear to be "short" due to the excess gum tissue.
Post-Surgical
Conservative surgery has exposed the normal appearance of the teeth. A normal, full smile brightens her life and creates more self-confidence.
Pre-Treatment
Post-Surgical
Pre-Treatment
Post-Surgical
Pre-Treatment
Post-Surgical
Post-Surgical
(After recontouring)
Pre-Treatment
Post-Surgical
Pre-Treatment
Post-Surgical