What advances have increased the predictability of esthetic periodontal surgery?
Improved root preparation techniques have greatly advanced grafting procedures. Enhanced magnification and illumination provide for superior visual acuity. Smaller instruments, needles, and sutures allow for precise surgical margins and minimal tissue trauma. The result of these advances has been shorter healing times, absence of scarring, and an esthetically pleasing blending of gingival contours and color. The photographs above vividly illustrate the esthetic advances in periodontal plastic surgery. This patient had an existing gingival graft. Notice the superior color and contours of the healed connective tissue graft.
