Smile Design: From Ape To Human.

ABSTRACT

Abstracts Background & Objective: The domain of periodontics has changed from being strictly a health service to one, where smile enhancement has been brought to the forefront of treatment planning. In the composition of a beautiful smile, the form, balance, symmetry and relationship of the elements make it attractive or unattractive. Altered passive eruption is one of the conditions where a large portion of the anatomic crown remains covered by the gingiva which compromises dentofacial aesthetics. Periodontal plastic procedures, such as the basic gingivectomy, osseous correction or the apically positioned flap, may be used to change the silhouette form of teeth and their relative proportion. Here is a case of a 22-year-old healthy male with altered passive eruption (type 1A) with treatment that resulted in a revised silhouette form for the tooth which is more elliptical and attractive so as to resolve the unwarranted excessive display of gingiva apparent during smiling.