Surgical Treatment of Gum Disease

Depending on the severity your periodontal disease level or if your non-surgical options have been exhausted, surgical intervention may be the next step to manage your disease.

If you have friends of family members who have had gum surgery in the past, it is important to note that surgery has come a long way. So if their stories are negative, they may have little or no relevance to your particular situation and we encourage you to keep an open mind about your options.

A Brief History of Periodontal Surgery

As early as the 1960s, gum surgery focused primarily on cutting the problem away which created results that were uncomfortable and unsightly. Since that time, the dental profession has worked at innovating techniques to reduce the discomfort and unsightliness. The first entrance to solve this problem was flap surgery of the 1970s which allowed the incisions to be made more internally, the tissue was minimally reflected, the roots were cleaned and stitches were used to replace the soft tissues closed over the bone for more comfort. Later that decade, the flaps were opened up further to expose more bone which provided access to reshape the bone while still allowing for the soft tissue to cover the bone. This method became known as osseous surgery. In the 1980s, with the bone exposed, it was discovered that the hole in the bone could be filled with a bioactive material like a blood clot or a bone graft which gave rise to what is known as guided bone regeneration. Later that decade, the idea of such wide reflection to access the defects was still more invasive which gave rise to the invention of the Laser Assisted New Attachment Procedure.

“The professional . . . has nothing to be but the continuous student.”

This famous quote by Dr. G.V. Black, founder of Northwestern University Dental School which Dr. Noraian attended, is an important foundation for Dr. Noraian’s practice. He has been schooled in the various evolutionary steps of his periodontal training and his desire for learning did not stop when he graduated from school. He has made a commitment to provide you with latest in proven periodontal and dental implant therapies and he will review your options when you during your consultation. New treatment options may be great, and the advantage of seeing a periodontist like Dr. Noraian is his ability to integrate these historic modalities to develop a modern treatment recommendation for you.