Are your gums making you glum?

So, what is gum or periodontal disease?

Gum Disease Treatment

This non-surgical route is known as scaling and root planning (or SRP). Depending on the severity of the gum disease, this may be an option. Our dentist or oral hygienist will scrape and remove as much plaque and tartar off your teeth and then scaling your root surfaces until they are smooth and bacteria-free. We may consider using a local anaesthetic or a topical numbing cream for this procedure and you may have to come back once or twice more. SRP will aid your gums in healing naturally whilst reattaching themselves to now clean and healthy teeth surfaces. We’d suggest you swing by the practice again in a few weeks so we can monitor your recovery. If your gum disease cannot be fixed through non-surgical treatment, we will refer you to our preferred specialist.

‘Gummy Smile’ Treatment

If your gums are the most prominent thing in your smile, turn to our team at The Smile Clinique. We guarantee it isn’t as bad as you think, and we’ve got the skills and experience to make you want to ‘show some teeth’. ‘Gummy smiles’ are known to be genetic and can occur due to either a short upper lip, small teeth, excess bone in the upper jaw, position of the teeth in the bone or even too much gum tissue. At The Smile Clinique in Perth, we want our patients to smile from the heart and it is our mission to work with our patients to create a plan that will meet their needs. If you feel your smile may be ‘gummy’, contact us now to discuss our range of solutions.

We offer two poplar and non-permanent treatments for that ‘gummy smile’, both of which will depend on you, our valued patient:

Muscle Relaxer Injections:

With a very low dose of muscle relaxer injected next to the nostrils, the elevator muscles that can cause or exacerbate a ‘gummy smile’ are softened but not frozen so you can still smile but the muscles do not pull up as much as they used to. You should start to see full results in about two weeks and the muscle relaxant injection normally lasts about 3 to 6 months after which intermittent top-up injections may be needed.

Lip-filler Injections:

Quick and to the point, a lip-filler injection involves inserting a dermal filler into the upper section of your lip or in some cases both upper and lower sections, to reduce the appearance of gums when you smile. Ultimately, lip fillers change the height of your upper lip so others see less gum when you smile. These lip-fillers give volume to whichever section of the lip into which they are injected and, as a bonus, they can help to reduce fine lines and improve symmetry and facial proportions.

Often, we will use a combination of the above to create the perfect balance for our patients.

Curious to find out more about our ‘gummy smile’ solutions for your smile? Contact us to discuss your range of options.