What Is Root Coverage, And How Does It Help?

Gum recession (gingival recession) occurs when there is not enough tissue to support the roots of your teeth. This makes it easy for disease-causing bacteria to build up, causing periodontal disease, which could lead to tooth loss and gum disease if left untreated. The most common causes of gingival recession are aggressive tooth brushing, poor oral hygiene, smoking, periodontal disease, genetics, and insufficient dental care, causing gum recession.

Prioritize Healthy Gums

Your overall gum health is essential. At Ridge Crest Dental Implants & Periodontics care about your gum health and specialize in root coverage grafting, which helps restore gum tissue, improve oral health, improve appearance, and reduce sensitivity.

Before gum recession treatment, a dental hygienist will perform a deep cleaning session to remove calculus and bacteria to increase your oral hygiene. We always advise our patients to use a soft-bristled toothbrush which is less harsh on gums, to practice proper oral hygiene like brushing and flossing regularly, which leads to healthy gums, prevents receding gums, stops harmful bacteria, leaves teeth clean, and an overall healthy mouth.

Gum Recession Treatment

Receding gums is another term for gingival recession, and to fix this problem, a gum graft is a procedure used to cover the exposed tooth root causing reduced tooth sensitivity. The affected gum tissue is addressed during the gum recession treatment by building up the gum line using graft tissue. Mild gum recession begins with thin gum tissue developing in the gums. The affected area can then be treated — even if the symptoms are mild — to prevent any future or more severe gum recession problems like tooth decay or missing gum tissue resulting in the need for gum grafting. Gum grafting, also known as root coverage, is when the missing tissue is replaced with gum grafts, usually taken from other areas of your mouth.

Treating receding gums can seem like a lengthy process, but with the right periodontics at our facility, we can help you treat gum disease, treat gum recession and help prevent gum recession and have no increased risk when it comes to the health of your teeth. Even if, in some cases, the gum recession might not be painful, it is vital to get treatment to avoid further gum recession, infection, or potential future discomfort. We use different procedures to help treat gum recession, which we will list below.

Procedure: Treating Receding Gums

Our goal with the procedures we perform is to decrease or even eliminate discomfort, which can come from one or more exposed teeth while eating or drinking hot or cold foods. This could cause a lot of sensitivity and not allow you to pleasantly cruise through your day performing your daily tasks. We aim for our clients to walk out with their teeth feeling and looking better than when they came in. Our treatments are based on the individual, and here are the two main treatments we specialize in.

Pinhole gum rejuvenation is where a needle makes tiny holes in the gum tissue. After that, specially designed tools are used, and the gum tissue is loosed and spread over the part of the receding gums. This procedure requires no cutting or stitching, making the recovery process very minimal. Patients are usually back to normal activities 24 to 48 hours after the procedure.

Root coverage grafting is gum surgery that permanently covers the exposed tooth roots. It helps prevent gum tissue from receding, preventing gum disease while protecting exposed roots from further decay. Tissue is taken from the roof of your mouth surgically and then placed on the teeth roots affected by the gingival recession. Many of our patients benefit a lot from these procedures and are always happy to walk out with all the goals of the procedure met.

Healing Process: Let’s Get Healthy Gums

We help you through the healing process by working to ensure you don’t get gum disease and by reducing the amount of discomfort you may feel. We talk to you about your oral health, how to avoid poor oral health, and any beneficial advice about healing and prevention. Gum problems can be avoided when you brush your teeth; practice gentle brushing. Dental cleaning by a dental hygienist will help with removing hard plaque buildup. We care about your oral health and know that every situation is different, so we ensure that the treatment we offer you is perfect for your situation and returns your healthy smile.

If you need treatment from gingival recession, are experiencing the early signs, need gum disease treatment, or are seeking better oral hygiene and health, contact us at (208) 552-3085

Find us at 2375 E Sunnyside Rd, Suite C, Idaho Falls, Idaho 83404