Esthetic gingival recontouring--a plea for honesty

There continues to be a tremendous amount of confusion in the dental literature and among practitioners regarding the diagnosis and treatment of gingival discontinuities. The purpose of this article is to present a rationale for gingival recontouring, illustrated by a case report. A patient requested gingival recontouring. Because the preoperative evaluation was inadequate, a simple gingivectomy procedure was performed. After healing, the tissue had rebounded to its preoperative levels. The patient was then evaluated more comprehensively, and gingival recontouring was accomplished with a mucoperiosteal flap and osseous recontouring. The tissue subsequently healed at the correct position and remained stable. To reliably perform gingival recontouring procedures, the dentist must have a clear understanding of the biologic width. By using diagnostic bone sounding, the practitioner can determine the appropriate surgical procedure that will ensure an esthetic and stable postoperative result.