Colorado Springs, CO -- (SBWIRE) -- 10/02/2014 -- Schope Dental, a general dentist's office in Colorado Springs, today announced the availability of its laser gum re-contouring treatments. These treatments allow patients to eliminate irregular gum lines and gummy smiles without the levels of pain associated with older gum reshaping methods.

"We realize that patients are affected by more than just the basic functionality of the teeth and gums," said Dr. Betty Jo Schope, DDS. "The self-esteem issues caused by problems with the appearance of the mouth can be just as important to patients. Many people will refuse to smile if they don't think their teeth and gums look good, and since facial expressions affect mood, this has a negative effect on their entire lives. Therefore, I and my office work to fix cosmetic issues as well as functional ones."

In many cases, an irregular gumline results from other problems in the mouth such as periodontal disease, cavities at the gumline, and similar issues. These problems can cause the gums around some of the teeth to recede, while they become puffy in other areas and stay normal in still more spots. The overall effect noticeably lacks uniformity and broadcasts the fact that there are or were problems in the mouth. When this is the case, the first thing that needs to be done is the correction of whatever problems are causing the irregularity.

At other times, medications result in the overgrowth of gum tissue. Genetics can also play a role in a smile that has an overall gummy appearance. In these cases, no other treatments may be needed before re-contouring is done. However, continued use of medicines that promote gum growth could result in the need for more treatments every so often.

"With laser gum re-contouring alone, extra gum tissue is removed to even up the appearance of the gums and to expose more of the surface of the teeth," Dr. Schope explained. "For some people, this is all that's needed to normalize the appearance of the mouth. In other cases, it will turn out that the appearance of large gums is really caused by an overgrowth of the underlying bone. When this situation occurs, we must remove that overgrowth so that the gums can sit lower."

Needless to say, recovery times vary according to what has been done to achieve the desired aesthetic result. While laser treatments are less painful than traditional scalpel-based gum reduction surgeries, it still takes a few days to recover from the main procedure. If bone removal or another such procedure was added to the process, recovery can take a few weeks. Once it is over, the patient will enjoy a much nicer-looking mouth and have no more reason not to smile.

To learn more, visit www.schopedental.com

About Schope Dental
Schope Dental is led by Betty Jo Schope, DDS, who has been practicing both cosmetic and general dentistry for 20 years. She prides herself on being gentle and thorough, and wants patients to have the best experience possible.