Healing Time for Final Restorative Therapy After Surgical Crown Lengthening Procedures: A Review of Related Evidence

Focused Clinical Question In healthy patients who receive surgical crown lengthening, how much healing time should be allowed for the positional changes of the gingival margin before final restoration? Clinical Scenario A 59-year-old woman presented to the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry in August 2011 for replacement of her existing porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns on the maxillary anterior teeth for esthetic reasons. Clinical examination revealed a diagnosis of developmental mucogingival deformity manifested by gingival excess in the maxillary anterior sextant. An esthetic evaluation was performed and identified excessive gingival display attributable to short clinical crowns and excluded vertical maxillary excess and short or hypermobile upper lip as etiologic factors. After signing a written informed consent, the patient underwent an esthetic crown lengthening procedure to correct this mucogingival deformity, followed by prosthodontic rehabilitation. The patient and restoring dentist were concerned with the healing time that should elapse before the teeth were permanently restored. Figures 1 through 5 illustrate the initial presentation of the patient, surgical crown lengthening procedure, and final restorations.