A Minimally Invasive Technique for the Management of Physiologic Gingival Melanin Hyperpigmentation: A Case Series.

An attractive smile enhances an individual's self-confidence. The overall harmony of a smile can be attributed to the interplay of the teeth's shape, color, and position along with the gingival tissue. Gingival pigmentation is observed across all human races, exhibiting variations from one race to another. Typically, gingival hyperpigmentation results from the abnormal buildup of melanin in the gingival tissue, imparting a dark appearance on the gums. Various procedures, collectively known as gingival depigmentation, are employed to address gingival hyperpigmentation. While the initial outcomes of depigmentation procedures are often promising, one common issue associated with them is the potential for re-pigmentation. This article aims to evaluate the clinical effectiveness and patient-reported outcomes of intraepidermal (oral mesotherapy) vitamin C injection for nonsurgical management of physiologic gingival melanin hyperpigmentation.

Reconstruction of interdental papilla using autogenous bone and connective tissue grafts.

Previous studies have reported the management of Class I and II papillary defects, but knowledge on Class III defects, estimated to have a poor periodontal prognosis, remains minimal. In this case report, a Class III papillary defect reconstruction was attempted mainly since the patient reported with difficulty in phonetics. In Stage I, autogenous bone graft from the maxillary tuberosity and subepithelial connective tissue graft was augmented to decrease the distance between the interdental bone crest and contact point, simultaneously achieving a switch in the periodontal biotype. In Stage II, subepithelial connective tissue graft was augmented to achieve papillary fill. To avoid manual errors associated with quantifying the posttreatment outcomes, image data processing ImageJ software was used to assess the length, perimeter, and surface area of papillary loss using the preoperative images.

Surgical augmentation of interdental papilla - A case series.

Formation of black triangles between teeth due to loss of interdental palpilla is one of the common problems encountered in routine clinical practice, as extreme importance is given to esthetics. This paper discusses two different surgical approaches in treating three cases with papillary loss in the first case the reconstruction of papilla was achieved by using a semilunar coronally repositioned papilla technique and in second and the third case reconstruction of the papilla was achieved by modification of Nodland's microsurgical technique. In all the three cases a free connective tissue graft was used to reconstruct the lost volume of interdental papilla. Complete reconstruction of the lost papilla was achieved in all the three cases 6 months postoperatively.

Lip repositioning surgery for correction of excessive gingival display.

Esthetic demands have considerably increased over the years in routine clinical practice. A pleasant smile can give supreme confidence to an individuals personality. However, a perfect smile is dictated by a perfect balance of the white (teeth) and pink (gingival) display. This balance can be managed different treatment modalities, which is based on proper diagnosis. This case report demonstrates a successful management of gummy smile with a lip-repositioning procedure in a patient with an incompetent upper lip. This was accomplished by removing a partial thickness strip of mucosa from the maxillary buccal vestibule and suturing the lip mucosa to the mucogingival line. This resulted in a narrower vestibule and restricted muscle pull, thereby resulting incompetent lips and reduced gingival display during smiling.

Relationship between depression and chronic periodontitis.

BACKGROUND: Periodontitis is a chronic, multifactorial, polymicrobial disease causing inflammation in the supporting structures of the teeth. There is a plethora of nonoral risk factors which can be quoted to aid in the development of chronic periodontitis. According to WHO, depression is a common mental disorder that presents with depressed mood, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt, disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy and poor concentration. Depression is associated with negligent oral health care and another mechanism proposed disturbance in the hypothalamic-pituitary axis system and hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid system, which can affect the periodontal status by affecting the immune system. AIM: The aim of this study was to assess the association between periodontal clinical parameters and depression rating. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study design is a case-control study with 35 patients each in case and control group. The periodontal parameters taken for measurement were probing depth and clinical attachment loss. Depression was calculated using Beck's depression scale. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The statistical analysis was performed by means of SPSS software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA; version 17.0 under windows 2000). Student's t-test was used to determine the relationship between the clinical periodontal parameters and depression. RESULTS: Self-reported scoring of depression by using Beck's depression inventory has shown that periodontal patients had a significantly higher total depression score than normal controls. CONCLUSION: This study reveals that there is a direct correlation between the severity of periodontal disease and the severity of depression in patients.

Relationship between interleukin 1α levels in the gingival crevicular fluid in health and in inflammatory periodontal disease and periodontal inflamed surface area: A correlative study.

BACKGROUND: Periodontitis has been suggested as a source of inflammation for pathological changes in distant sites. Interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1α) has shown to have specific roles in inflammation, immunity, tissue breakdown, and tissue homeostasis. This study assessed the correlation of periodontal inflamed surface area (PISA) index with the gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) levels of IL-1α, which would be helpful in evaluating the validity of PISA index in terms of reflection of the disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 40 subjects were recruited for this study and 20 subjects with healthy gingiva (Group I) served as controls and 20 subjects served as cases with periodontitis (Group II). Samples of GCF were obtained from one site in each patient by placing color-coded, calibrated, volumetric microcapillary pipettes extracrevicularly, and subjected to ELISA test. RESULTS: There was a statistical significance for mean probing depth (PD) and periodontal epithelial surface area (PESA) (P < 0.01), mean bleeding on probing and PISA, IL-1α (P < 0.01) and PESA (P < 0.05) in Group I. Statistical significance was found between PISA and IL-1α in Group I (P < 0.01). A positive correlation was found in Group II between mean PD and mean attachment loss (P < 0.01), PISA, IL-1α and PESA (P < 0.01), PISA and IL-1α levels (P < 0.01) which was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The inflammatory burden index was statistically significant in the periodontitis group correlating with higher IL-1α levels, which clearly indicates the validity of PISA index.