Canadian Academy of Periodontology
The foundation of a healthy smile
Clinical crown-lengthening
Often when a tooth fractures or has a very large filling and your dentist has recommended a crown to restore the tooth to normal function a crown-lengthening procedure is required.
This procedure involves the removal and re-contouring of the gum and bone surrounding the tooth. This provides your dentist with sufficient tooth to work with in order to place the crown so that it will have a better chance of being retained on the tooth and to allow the gum tissues to be healthy.
Example of a healthy tooth.
For more information on normal tooth anatomy, go to the anatomy page.
Example of a tooth fracture below the gum line, into the jaw bone.
The restorative dentist cannot access the remaining tooth structure and restore this tooth adequately.
A periodontal procedure is required to remove some bone and expose the remaining tooth structure.
Final bone and gum level after healing.
The remaining tooth structure is accessible to the restorative dentist.
The tooth is restored with a filling.
Depending on the remaining tooth structure, a crown may also be required to restore the tooth.
Did you know?
Smoking
Current smokers are about 4 times more likely to have advanced periodontal disease...