Dr. Hall,
When I was pregnant my gums swelled so bad to where you couldn’t see my bottom teeth, they never fully went back to normal and are “detached” is there any way to fix this? Could gum contouring help?
– Linnea
(See Dr. Hall’s answer below.)
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Linnea,
Most women, when they are pregnant, will have a condition called pregnancy gingivitis in which the gums are extra sensitive to irritants. They may swell, be more tender, and have a greater tendency to bleed.
What you should do, if this happens to you, is be more conscientious in your oral hygiene:
- Brush more often, making sure keep the neck of the tooth clean
- Floss
- Maybe rinse occasionally with 3% hydrogen peroxide
(Be careful with the peroxide. Rinsing with peroxide also kills off beneficial bacteria, so you don’t want to do it daily for more than two weeks or you will end up with a yeast infection in your mouth.)
Your case seems particularly severe. In my practice I never saw a case of pregnancy gingivitis that involved more than moderate swelling of the gums.
As far as what to do now, I don’t know enough about your specific situation to give you a definite recommendation. Your gums are swollen. Are they bleeding, too? Any inflammation of the gums should be reduced or even eliminated with scrupulous oral hygiene. If you’ve tried that and it isn’t working, you need to have your dentist look at it. But I wouldn’t recommend any gum contouring or other surgical work on your gums without first establishing strong oral hygiene to eliminate the source of the irritation to your gums. Otherwise the swelling will just come back.
– Dr. Hall
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About David A. Hall
Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.