Less than 10% of our patients require periodontal surgery because we can effectively treat most cases with the non-surgical Perioscope procedure.
When Do We Use Traditional Periodontal Surgery?
Keeping You Comfortable
Your comfort is a top priority for our entire team. We offer pillows for your neck or legs and soft blankets to keep you cozy.
Dr. Bakuri provides gentle, painless injections and local anesthesia to ensure your complete comfort.
We also offer sedation options for anxious patients and longer procedures. As a result, patients do not report discomfort during or after this procedure!
$149 New Patient Exam, X-rays and Consultation
Flap Surgery for Severe Periodontitis
With the rare cases of gum disease that cannot be treated with perioscopy, we use flap surgery. This procedure creates a surgical opening, and the gum is lifted away from the tooth to allow access to the infected area. (The “flap” of gum tissue is analogous to an envelope flap that provides access to the contents within.)
We can then thoroughly clean hardened bacterial buildup from the roots, leaving a smooth surface difficult for bacteria to cling to. This allows the gum tissue to regenerate without further irritation and reattach to the roots of the teeth.
The area is then medicated, and the gum flap is replaced and sutured, providing an environment for the bone and gum tissue to heal. One of the goals of flap surgery is to reduce the depth of the periodontal pockets to make them easier to keep clean in the future.
Rebuilding Lost Bone
Bone Grafting
Bone grafting is commonly done during periodontal surgical procedures. If needed, we can add materials to regenerate bone that has been lost. The bone used for this procedure can be your own bone, bone from a tissue bank, bovine bone or synthetic materials. Bone grafting can add years of life to a compromised tooth or even totally reverse the damage.
Emdogain Gel
When gums have receded, or there is damage below a tooth root in the area where it branches out, we may use Emdogain gel.
This revolutionary product utilizes a protein to stimulate the regrowth of gum tissue, ligament and bone that have been lost due to moderate-to-severe periodontitis. Regaining the structural support provided by these hard and soft tissues helps save your tooth.
Guided Tissue Regeneration
Guided tissue regeneration is a process of placing a membrane to act as a barrier between tissues that heal more quickly (gums and ligaments) and bone. This procedure allows time for the bone to regenerate without the encroachment of the faster-healing tissues.
Laser Gum Surgery
Recontouring A Gumline
A “gummy smile” occurs when the amount of gum tissue displayed when talking or smiling is disproportionate to the amount of teeth shown. Dr. Bakuri uses lasers to gently remove excess gum tissue and give a more balanced appearance to your mouth.
Uneven gumlines can flaw the appearance of an otherwise lovely smile. Gum tissue can be easily modified with a laser to create a smooth, even gumline to frame your smile.
Frenectomies
Frenectomies involve the removal of a frenum in the mouth. A frenum is a muscular attachment between two tissues. There are two frena (the plural form of frenum) in the mouth that can sometimes obstruct normal function and need to be removed.
The lingual frenum, which connects the tongue to the floor of the mouth, can run the full length of the tongue and interfere with speech. The maxillary labial frenum, which connects the inside of your upper lip to your gums just above your upper two front teeth, can become so prominent that it causes a gap between the two front teeth.
Dr. Bakuri can fix these problems by gently trimming, adjusting or removing the frenum.