Gum Surgery

There are two main types of gum surgeries.  One type of gum surgery involves peeling the gums away from the teeth to gain access deep under the gums, removing the debris and infected tissues that the “deep cleaning” was not able to get to.  The other type of gum surgery involves regrowing the lost bone and tooth ligament (periodontal ligament) around the teeth.  In both types of surgery, the gums will be stitched back.  After the surgery, patients may experience some sensitivity to cold air and cold beverages.  In addition, patient may experience food impaction between teeth, with teeth now looking slightly longer than prior to surgery.  Apart from these expected outcomes, recovery after gum surgeries is relatively quick and mild.

In the recent years, laser gum surgery has emerged in the treatment of gum disease.  Laser surgery utilizes laser energy to remove the diseased tissues and kill the bacteria that causes gum disease.  In laser surgery there are no scalpels and stitches; therefore, laser gum surgery is usually associated with an even faster recovery period post-operatively, and sensitivity and food impaction is usually not an issue.