Gummy Smile, Deep Bite Orthodontic Correction, Gum Protrusion, Gum Asymmetry

Hello.

This is Apgujeong Orthodontic Dental Clinic.

Today, I’m sharing a treatment review for protrusive incisors, gummy smile, and deep bite.

When the front teeth are tipped backward, this is called protrusive incisors.

A characteristic of protrusive incisors is that although the front teeth are tipped backward, the roots of the front teeth protrude outward together with the gums, making it look like gum protrusion.

Today, I’ll show a case of protrusive incisors and gummy smile correction, and explain how orthodontic treatment can improve a gummy smile as well as the effects of gum contouring.

There are many ways to treat protrusive incisors.

These include Invisalign, Clippy C, and no-prep laminate.

The treatment method depends on the patient’s needs and the condition of the gums and teeth.

The case introduced today involves a condition in which gummy smile and protrusive incisors are mixed together.

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This patient visited in April 2023 for improvement of gummy smile, protrusive incisors, and deep bite.

This is a severe deep bite in which the lower teeth are completely hidden by the upper teeth.

Gum asymmetry, where the gum height differs between the left and right sides, is also visible.

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The front teeth are tipped backward due to protrusive incisors.

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When the front teeth are tipped backward in protrusive incisors, the gum around the front tooth roots can appear relatively prominent, making it look like gum protrusion.

There was no lip protrusion, so the treatment plan was non-extraction treatment: removing the wisdom teeth, placing mini screws, and moving the molars backward into the wisdom tooth spaces.

The treatment goals were to improve the angle of the front teeth and intrude them to resolve the gummy smile and deep bite. I also explained that the gum asymmetry seen at the initial visit would require gum contouring after orthodontic treatment, and treatment was started with Clippy C orthodontics.

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Mini screws were used.

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To relieve the deep bite, bite blocks were also attached to the front teeth.

After continuing treatment in this way, the treatment was completed in January 2025.

The total treatment period was 1 year and 10 months.

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The deep bite improved, but the gum asymmetry remained the same.

To address this, gum contouring was performed.

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This photo was taken immediately after gum contouring.

There was only a little bleeding where the gum was swollen, and there was no bleeding in other areas.

Let’s look at the intraoral photos after treatment.

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It is a good bite.

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It looks like the retainer has also been attached.

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Symmetry of the gum line is important in smile aesthetics.

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The protruding area of gum near the roots of the upper front teeth has become smooth.

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As the protrusive incisors improve and the roots move backward, the gums covering the roots also move backward.

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Now let’s look at the before-and-after facial comparison.

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At the initial visit, the patient was not smiling widely, so the gummy smile was not clearly expressed.

After orthodontic treatment, the gummy smile was well improved.

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In the side profile, the improvement in the backward-tilted angle of the protrusive incisors is clearly visible.

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When smiling broadly, the improvement in protrusive incisors is also clearly visible.

I hope this post is helpful for those who are concerned about protrusive incisors and gum protrusion.