I need some advice. My gums have been receding and it has caused there to be little holes between my teeth. I asked my dentist about it and he suggested we treat them with dental bonding. I was excited about that and went forward. I do not know what is normal for this. The bonding look like there are little white bits of hardened paste stuck in the holes. It doesn’t match the rest of the teeth. That is a bit embarrassing, but the thing that worries me is that I can only floss those teeth up to where the bonding is. I can’t actually get all the way down to the gums the way I used to be able to. Is this normal for this type of treatment?
Carol
Dear Carol,
I want to differeniate between a cosmetic repair and a treatment. Placing dental bonding does not do anything about the cause of the receding gums. It is important to know why the gums are receding. If the gums are receding because of periodontal disease, it is important that you get actual treatment, and not just a cosmetic repair or you will end up losing your teeth.
When it comes to a cosmetic repair, dental bonding can be a good way to do that. However, it takes an expert cosmetic dentist with a significant amount of post-doctoral training to do it correctly. Above is an example of those “holes”, called black triangles in dental circles, being repaired with dental bonding. This does not sound like what your repair looked like.
The fact that the cosmetic bonding does not match your teeth tells me your dentist does not understand color theory and is not skilled in esthetics. The fact that you cannot floss past the dental bonding tells me that your dentist is lacking technical knowledge that is imperative for this type of procedure.
If you cannot floss down into the gums it means you have a food trap which will accumlate plaque and bacteria. This will lead to gum disease and is a threat to your oral health. My suggestion is you ask for a refund from this dentist and get the bonding removed and replaced by a dentist who has the cosmetic skills to do it.
Bear in mind, if the receding gums are from gum disease, then you need to have that treated. This blog is brought to you by Hoffman Estates Dentist Dr. William Becker.