Crown Lengthening

Reveal a Beautiful, Healthy Smile

Personalized Gummy Smile Treatment

A “gummy” smile is the term for when too much gum tissue covers the teeth. When a person smiles, the teeth often appear small as much of the gums show between the tooth crowns and upper lip. Mostly an aesthetic issue, having excessive gum tissue over the teeth can also increase the risk for decay beneath.  If you’re embarrassed to show your smile or need functional treatment, crown lengthening can help! Our periodontists, Dr. John Darby and Dr. Timothy Johnson, are experts in this soft tissue treatment, combining decades of artistic and technical skill to reveal your beautiful, symmetrical smile with personalized crown lengthening in Ocala and Crystal River, FL.

Why Get Crown Lengthening?

  • Improve how your smile looks
  • Fix a damaged or fractured tooth
  • Restore proper tooth-to-gum ratio
  • Reduce infection and decay risk
  • Correct “small” teeth
dental patient in need of crown lengthening

Improve Smile Symmetry

Aesthetic crown lengthening improves the appearance of the smile by restoring symmetry between the teeth and gums. Depending on your situation, we may only need to remove and reshape the gum tissue, or we may need to also remove a portion of the bone before moving the gum tissue into a more aesthetic position. When we’ve found a good tooth-to-gum ratio, we’ll gently suture the gums into place around each tooth. Your beautiful, symmetrical smile will be evident immediately, though the treatment site will need a few weeks to fully heal. Your gums will not grow back around your teeth, leaving you with a stunning smile you can feel confident in for years to come.

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Restore Tooth Function

Sometimes, our crown lengthening procedures are due to more functional reasons. A tooth that needs a dental crown or treatment for decay or damage may need excessive gum tissue removed first. If a tooth has been damaged beneath the gum line, crown lengthening will create access to the tooth so it can be repaired. If a tooth needs a dental crown, crown lengthening removes a portion of the gums and bone so the restoration can be attached properly without harming the tissues. Functional crown lengthening is a surgical procedure, so you’ll need a few weeks to heal fully. With restorations or treatment completed, you can once again enjoy a comfortable, functional smile.

dental crown model

Is it time to reveal your beautiful smile?

crown lengthening patient smiling