When you don't brush and floss, there is excessive bacteria growth on your teeth and between your braces. This can cause your gums to swell or become inflamed and irritated; they may bleed, and in some cases, they may be triggered to start growing more gum, which is called hypertrophy or hyperplasia.
Receding Gums Due To Braces
With orthodontics, your teeth are moved out of their natural position and pushed into a new one. The strength used to straighten the teeth can cause stress on the surrounding bone and gum, contributing to recession.
This is a result of the overgrowth of gum tissue around your teeth. It typically reduces with an improvement in oral hygiene. This overgrowth usually completely subsides about 6-8 weeks after you have your braces removed. Rarely, you need to have the overgrowth removed surgically if the gums become fibrotic.
Braces are an investment in your future smile and overall dental health, working to slowly straighten your teeth and align your bite. But the fact is braces make it harder to brush and floss effectively, leading to a build-up of plaque that can cause puffy and inflamed gums.
Conclusion. While braces can help straighten teeth and give users the confidence to smile more often, these dental implements can also cause receding gums that can lead to oral health issues.
Gum overgrowth can also occur due to genetics and a condition called gingival fibromatosis, in which healthy gum tissue grows so excessively that it can completely cover teeth if it isn't removed by a professional. Additional causes for overgrowth include hormonal imbalances, pregnancy, and even leukemia.
Braces are indirectly related to gummy smiles through poor dental hygiene. Patients in traditional braces often find brushing and flossing more troublesome as the braces cause an obstruction. Bacteria then builds up in and around the gums, causing inflammation and a gummy smile.
Scaling and root planing is a safe and effective way to remove plaque and tartar to improve your gum health. You can also ask your dentist about surgical options. With laser therapy, they can quickly eliminate the overgrowth to create an even gumline without excessive bleeding or swelling.
Healthy gums are pink (or light brown if you are darker-skinned), firm, and do not bleed when you brush or floss. The gums fit snugly around the teeth on all sides to help protect the underlying bone.
Swollen, red, and loose gums are a sure sign that a person has developed gum disease, also called periodontal disease. This occurs when built-up plaque infiltrates the gums and begins to eat away at the surrounding structures.
While your gums won't grow back on their own, surgical treatment can be used to replace the missing tissue, and restore both your appearance and your oral health. Gum grafting involves taking soft tissue from another part of the mouth and grafting it onto your gums.
Your orthodontist will know how to look for this potential problem. Snapped wires and brackets. If you wear your braces for too long without having them checked and adjusted, there is a chance they dislodge or break, which in turn can teeth to move in unwanted directions.
Wearing braces for too long also puts patients at risk of complications. Root resorption. Root resorption is one of the most common issues that arise from orthodontics. It is characterized by the body destroying the tooth's root surface and is a normal part of losing our infant's teeth.
How can this orthodontic treatment affect your facial shape? Orthodontic treatment can not only improve your tooth alignment but also have an effect on the positioning and form of your skeletal features—like your jaw—ultimately resulting in a slight change to your facial shape.
If your jaw ridge is large enough to support the incoming tooth, then your dentist might just remove the gum flap, which could allow the tooth to fully erupt. Removing the gum flap is known as an operculectomy.
In many cases, your dentist may recommend removing the gum flap (operculum). This requires a short oral surgery procedure. Sedation is available, but often unnecessary. Typically, your provider can complete this procedure with local anesthesia in less than one hour.
What Color are Unhealthy Gums? Disease-causing bacteria can cause gums to become inflamed, which can sometimes lead to bright red gums. In other cases, the bacteria can cause an infection that results in white or blue gums. And in severe cases, the infection can cause the gums to turn black.
Red or swollen gums
Healthy gums should be pink and firm to the touch, but in the early stages of unhealthy gums or a worse gum disease (known as gingivitis), they can become red, swollen or, even painful.
More often than not, unhealthy gums come with a number of unpleasant symptoms. Unhealthy gums may appear bright red and swollen. They may feel extremely sensitive or tender to the touch. They may bleed everytime you brush or floss your teeth.