Gum Grafting Surgery

Gum recession is one of those problems that advances quietly. A millimeter here, another there — until one day you notice your teeth look longer, you feel sensitivity with something cold, or you see a yellowish tone near the gumline where root is exposed. Causes vary: aggressive brushing, gum disease, teeth grinding, even genetics. But the result is the same: exposed roots that are more vulnerable to decay, sensitivity, and further tissue loss.

Gum grafting reverses that process. We take tissue — from your own palate, processed donor tissue, or a collagen matrix — and place it carefully over the exposed roots, where it integrates with existing tissue. Beyond covering roots and reducing sensitivity, the graft creates a thicker, more resilient band of attached gum that guards against future recession. And there's a benefit our patients value enormously: the smile looks more balanced and youthful when the gumline returns to its natural position.

At Tribeca Dental Studio, we perform gum grafting as an outpatient procedure under local anesthesia, and most of our downtown Manhattan patients return to work the next day. The palate donor site — when we use your own tissue — heals within one to two weeks with the aftercare we provide. If the idea of a graft concerns you, a consultation at our Warren Street office will give you a clear picture of what to expect, with no obligation.

Patients often arrive asking for a gum graft when what they actually need is LANAP — or vice versa. They're two answers to two different problems, and the evaluation is what tells them apart. LANAP treats active gum disease: the laser clears infection from beneath the gumline and stimulates bone and tissue to regenerate, all without scalpels or stitches. It's for mouths where the disease is still doing damage right now.

Grafting is for what the disease — or aggressive brushing, grinding, or genetics — already took away. When roots are exposed and the gumline has receded, no laser can put that tissue back; a graft covers the roots, thickens the gum, and guards against future loss. Sometimes the honest answer is both: LANAP to stop the active infection, then grafting to rebuild what's missing. That's exactly the kind of sequencing our evaluation is designed to map out.

And whichever path your mouth needs, the approach here is minimally invasive. Dr. Sam Morhaim was one of the first periodontists to adopt LANAP — the healing is phenomenal, with recovery more like a filling than a surgical procedure. If the idea of gum surgery makes you nervous, come in for the evaluation first. You'll leave knowing exactly what your gums need and why — never a treatment you didn't ask to understand.