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Gummy Smile Treatment: Causes and Treatment

Gummy Smile Treatment: Causes and Treatment

Article author

MD Doctor
Medically reviewed by

MD Doctor

Updated: February 21, 2024
Minutes to read: 7

Gummy Smile Treatment

In this article, we will cover everything you should know about a gummy smile, especially how to have it fixed.

We guide you through this expert comprehensive article by detailing the following topics.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Overview

A gummy smile, also known as excessive gingival display, is one where too much gum is perceived to be exposed anytime one smiles. It is more of a perception problem than a medical issue, as there are no set metrics for when a smile should be considered gummy.

However, a general consensus considers a smile to be gummy when more than three millimetres of gum is exposed while you are smiling.

The perception of gumminess is affected by the shape and height of your teeth, the angle of your jaw, and the movement of lips during a smile. It is a condition more commonly perceived in women and prevalent in the age range 20 to 30.

gummy 04 v2

Causes Of A Gummy Smile

Even if it is not an outright medical condition, there are some factors that cause a gummy smile. The most common of them are as follows:

  • Short/small teeth

    The most common reason for a gummy smile is short/small teeth, which gives an uneven gum-to-teeth ratio. Small teeth may be covered mostly by gum tissue, leaving room for excessive gingival display. Small teeth are caused primarily by genetics.

  • Lip size

    When an upper lip is too short to cover the gum, it can lead to a gummy smile. Also, when your lips contort dramatically while smiling, it could expose too much gum tissue.

  • Gingival hypertrophy/hyperplasia

    This happens when your gum bulges or grows too much around your teeth. Other than genetics, this is sometimes caused by frequent usage of some medications. These medications include anti-epileptic drugs, immunosuppressants, and antihypertensive drugs.

  • Maxillary excess

    This condition appears when the upper jaw overgrows, causing the gum to appear bulgy.

Gummy Smile Treatment Options

There are a handful of treatment options available for a gummy smile, depending on the cause. You can get orthodontics, surgery, and a botulinum type A injection. 

We detail these treatment options in the following headings.

Orthodontics

Orthodontics is the appropriate treatment choice when the reason for the gummy smile is mild and correctable by temporary anchorage devices. When the condition is caused by orthodontic problems in your teeth or jaws, devices like braces, self-litigating brackets, elastics, and aligners for correction can help you. 

A commonly used example of orthodontics is veneers. With veneers, the upper set of the teeth will appear elongated, keeping the tooth-to-gum ratio as even as possible. The veneers are also called dental crowns and can be installed within a day after a dentist’s consultation.

Surgery

With more serious dental complications causing a gummy smile, invasive surgery procedures might be necessary. Different types of surgery procedures for gummy smile treatment include Gingevectomy, Lip repositioning surgery, Orthognathic surgery, and Crown-lengthening surgery.

  • Gingevectomy

    Also called gum contouring, it is a procedure that involves removing excessive gum tissue for an even teeth-to-gum ratio. Dentists use scalpels or lasers to trim and reshape the gum so that more teeth are exposed. A local anaesthetic is used to prevent pain during surgery.

  • Orthognatic surgery

    For people with maxillary excesses, an orthognatic surgery might be the best fit. It is a procedure that helps to even the length of the upper and lower jaws. A jawbone will probably be removed, modified, and reattached with screws and tiny plates. It is an extensive procedure that could keep you in the hospital for up to four days, and you may need to use elastics while the jaw heals. The healing process can take up to three months.

  • Lip positioning surgery

    If your gummy smile results from the position of your lips, a repositioning could be done to help cover more gum tissue when you smile. This involves the removal of a part of your upper lip’s connective tissue to make your lip stay down during a smile. It is a simple procedure that is done in under an hour, and recovery takes about a week.

  • Crown-lengthening surgery

    For teeth that haven’t developed fully, a lengthening procedure could be done to help expose the teeth.

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Injections Of Botulinum Toxin Type A

A gummy smile botox is commonly used by patients who do not want to go under the knife but want to maintain an aesthetic smile. The mechanism of action is to use Botulinum toxin type A to paralyse the lip’s elevator muscles.

example botulin gummy smile

This will help keep your upper lip from contouring dramatically when you smile. It is affordable and less invasive compared to other procedures highlighted so far. However, this option requires you to get repeat injections every three to four months. 

Fixing A Gummy Smile With Botulinum Toxin Type A

The Yonsei point is the junction that holds the three elevator muscles of the lips: the zygomaticus minor (ZMi), the levator labii superioris alaeque nasi (LLSAN), and the levator labii superioris (LLS). Injection of the Botulinum Toxin Type A into this Yosei point causes it to become temporarily paralysed or denervated, hindering hypermobility and excessive lifting of the upper lip. 

Before the injection procedure begins, local anaesthesia is applied. The procedure takes about an hour, with very few side effects or downtime recorded. With proper maintenance, a botox should last about four months, after which you must get another injection to keep the gummy smile fixed.

gummy smile correction renovotravel

Summary

When your gummy smile starts affecting your confidence and self-esteem, it may be time to consider a procedure to fix it. Fortunately, correcting a gummy smile can be affordable and non-invasive, depending on the cause of it. Your first step to fixing the condition is to consult a doctor to see what procedure is best for you to correct your gummy smile and make it aesthetically pleasing.

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3.9
(49 Reviews)
NewMe Health Clinic
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NewMe Health Clinic

4.7
(25 Reviews)
Dent Glow Clinic
Clinic

Dent Glow Clinic

4.7
(76 Reviews)
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Clinic

DENTAGLOBAL Dental Clinic

4.8
(193 Reviews)
WestDent Clinic
Clinic

WestDent Clinic

4.6
(92 Reviews)
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Clinic Medical Centers Plastic Surgery

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FAQ

Let’s look at some of the treatments available to address the issues associated with a gummy smile!

  • Orthodontics. If the cause of a gummy smile is a bad bite, orthodontic treatment like braces or clear aligners can help fix it.
  • Veneers or Crowns.
  • Scaling and Root Planing.
  • Gum Lift or Crown Lengthening.
  • Lip Lowering.

A gummy smile, known in medical terms as excessive gingival display, is when you smile and too much gum tissue shows above the top teeth. There is not a set definition of a gummy smile, as it is not a medical problem per se. A gummy smile is mainly based on personal perception.