Cosmetic Injections: Injectable Treatments to Fix a Gummy Smile
Are you happy with your smile? Or do you feel too much gum shows whenever you grin? Find out how cosmetic injection treatments can help correct a gummy smile in our top Melbourne Cosmetic Treatments Blog.
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A smile has the ability to light up a person’s entire face. While everyone’s smile is unique, not everyone is happy with how their smile looks. Whether you have a mildly lopsided smile or a smile that shows a lot of gum between your lips and upper teeth, cosmetic injection treatments may be able to help you attain smile symmetry and a less-gummy looking smile.
The Gummy Smile: Do you feel there’s too much gum showing between your teeth and lips?
- Some people feel their gums are overly prominent whenever they smile.
- This is referred to as a ‘gummy smile.’
- It is sometimes caused by a hypermobile lip or a short upper lip
- It can also be caused by a certain type of ‘bite’ (tooth and jaw locations)
Excessive gum visibility during smiling can sometimes divert attention away from a beautiful set of teeth. “Too much gum showing” during a smile might also draw attention to uneven teeth.
Are you self-conscious about your smile? Visible gum tissues when smiling can leave some individuals feeling self-conscious about a “gummy looking” smile. Some individuals might even stop smiling altogether, especially for photographs. Some people even teach themselves to keep their lips together.
This limits their natural facial expressiveness and they may even stop communicating as much as they’d like!
All of this sounds like work and takes away from the brightening effect of a smile. But the common misconception is that a gummy smile is simply too difficult to fix.
Cosmetic Injection Treatments or Surgery to fix a gummy smile?
Many of us incorrectly assume that the only options to reduce highly visible gum tissues are invasive surgical procedures performed by a Cosmetic Dentist, Oral Surgeon or Plastic Surgeon.
However, there are non-surgical, more affordable options for those wanting to correct their ‘gummy smile’.
- Achieving your ideal smile doesn’t have to be a drawn-out, painful process that drains your bank account or involves excessive recovery periods.
- Cosmetic Injections in the hands of a skilled injector might be a solution worth exploring.
If you’re self-conscious or unhappy about an overly-gummy smile, you’ll be unable to contain your smile when you discover there are cosmetic injection treatments available to help.
In the past, surgery was typically the main treatment for people wanting to reduce a ‘gummy smile’. But this involved a costly and often painful surgical process such as:
- Correcting the appearance of gums by severing the muscles that elevate the upper lip so it no longer rises as high during a smile
- Crown lengthening by cutting or lasering away gum tissues so the tooth crown appears longer compared to the gums (known as a gum lift) – but given gums are important, do you really want to take them away?
Now, many people are opting for a less invasive, non-surgical route:
Cosmetic, muscle relaxant injections into the vertical columns situated under your nose (known as the philtrum), or dermal fillers injected into the upper lip – or both – to reduce a gummy looking smile.
- This method of treatment is less invasive, although there are some injecting risks to consider (ask for details).
- The use of muscle relaxant injectables or dermal fillers is not, however, permanent.
- Depending on the patient, it may involve recurring cosmetic injecting treatments 3-6 months apart.
This may be a more viable solution for many patients, given surgery is sometimes painful and more costly.
Do injections work for everyone? The answer is no, they don’t – and not everyone is a suitable candidate for cosmetic injections or lip fillers. However, many people find they can get smile appearance improvements using these non-surgical cosmetic injection options.
- It is important to note that cosmetic injectables may not work to correct a gummy smile for all patients.
- Treatment options and results will vary from person to person.
- Understand the procedure and risks before you consent and do choose a skilled injecting clinician.
An experienced and well-trained professional Cosmetic Injecting Clinician or Nurse will be able to determine if cosmetic injectables are a suitable option for your particular condition. You can find out if you’re a suitable candidate by arranging an appointment with a Senior Injecting Clinician/Cosmetic Injecting Physician.
But how much is too much when it comes to the appearance of our gums, and how can cosmetic injecting procedures help to correct this?
Gummy smiles occur for a variety of reasons, most commonly a short upper lip, excessive gum tissue or small teeth, all of which are genetic. According to some Cosmetic Dentists, “anything over three to four millimetres of gum showing when smiling may appear to look ‘gummy.”
Studies have been done with Dentists, Plastic Surgeons and Dermatologists to assess smiles, with most agreeing that two millimetres or less of gum tissue showing was what most people thought looked most aesthetically pleasing.
So what temporary solutions are available to help achieve your ideal smile?
Gummy Smile Injecting Techniques: Approved Muscle Relaxant Injections
Muscle Relaxant Injections may be recommended in instances where a patient has a strong upper lip muscle, which recedes to reveal a bit too much of your gum line. Some injectors combine Muscle Relaxant solutions with dermal filler injections, i.e. lip filler injections, for a more dramatic or longer-lasting effect.
- With this method, an experienced Cosmetic Injecting Clinician will inject muscle relaxant solution into both sides of the vertical columns situated under your nose (philtrum).
- The solution works by relaxing the upper lip retraction after it’s injected into the upper lip muscle.
- You’ll notice that you have less gum exposed when you smile. This is because your lip muscle is less active.
Elevation of the upper lip will gradually become reduced in the days following your cosmetic injection treatments. You’ll likely notice full results after approximately two weeks.
This is a temporary treatment for a gummy smile and will typically last for around 3-6 months, requiring top-ups to maintain your new smile.
Dermal Lip Filler Injections can also help reduce an overly-gummy looking smile
- Sometimes you can have Dermal Fillers injected into the upper or lower lips to reduce a gummy smile.
- Lip filler injections work by volumising the lips to help cover the gums. (They can also help temporarily reduce fine lines above the lips.)
Lip filler injections essentially augment the height of the upper lip, slightly, which results in a minimised gum appearance when you smile.
- This procedure may augment the shape and size of your lips to a certain degree.
- If you do not desire a change in your lip appearance, you may not want to consider this option. However, most people like the slightly plumper lip appearance so long as it’s kept in the natural enhancement range.
- This is also a temporary treatment for a gummy smile. It typically lasts for around 3-6 months. And it requires cosmetic injection top-ups to help maintain your new smile.
So what do I need to know before proceeding with cosmetic injectable treatment for my gummy smile?
As with any cosmetic treatment or procedure, you will want to choose an expert clinician with the proper experience and training in carrying out advanced injectable treatments such as those available to correct a gummy smile. Finding the right clinician can ensure that you receive optimum results and reduce the chance of negative side effects. Medical injecting treatments do, of course, carry some risks.
Our team of highly experienced Injecting Clinicians in Melbourne. With a wealth of experience and training, our team uses a wide range of anti-wrinkle and dermal filler solutions for a range of cosmetic treatments. These include techniques to correct a gummy smile.
Remember, injectable treatments for gummy smiles are NOT a permanent solution. They will often require regular injectable top-ups around 3-6 months to maintain an improved smile.
Read more about Resting Bitch Face: Can Cosmetic Injections Help?
Want to know if you are a good candidate for cosmetic injections to reduce your gummy smile?
Call our team on (03) 8849 1400 to book a consultation with one of our highly experience Injecting Clinicians.
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