What Is the Pinhole Surgical Technique?

There are several different ways to treat gum recession. One of the more popular ways that has taken over the world of periodontics is the Pinhole Surgical Technique. This unique method can help restore the health of your receding gums with ease. Read on to learn more about the Pinhole Surgical Technique in this article.

What is the Pinhole Surgical Technique used for?

In the following paragraphs, we’ll take a brief look at gum recession, to better understand how the Pinhole Surgical Technique can help.

Gum Recession

Gum recession is when there is a loss in your gum’s length and height along your teeth. This means that the gum tissue has receded well past the gumline and is exposing the bottoms of your teeth. This generally happens when a person has periodontal disease like:

  • Gingivitis
  • Periodontitis
  • Advanced periodontitis

It can also occur from abrasive tactics when one is brushing their teeth or due to the natural aging process. Gum recession can happen to anyone who takes good care of their teeth as well because of aging. For this reason it is important that people know what it is.

Why should gum recession be taken seriously?

Gum recession cannot only hurt your smile, but it can physically hurt your mouth as well. When there is gum recession, the structural part of the tooth can become exposed. This makes it susceptible to damage. Damage can include tooth decay among a number of other health problems. Such health problems are the ones that affect the teeth. This can happen both beneath the gum line and along it.

Because healthy gums are imperative to healthy mouths, having gum recession is no laughing matter. It is important that you get treated for your gum recession as soon as you notice that it is happening. This can ensure long-lasting well-being of the oral cavity.

What is the Pinhole Surgical Technique?

The Pinhole Surgical Technique is a surgery option that is minimally invasive. This is an option that allows the doctor to treat gum recession without all of the surgery that is usually necessary to treat it. Unlike a usual grafting technique that is often employed with this type of treatment, this technique does not come with any sutures or scalpels.

The tools and methods that the Pinhole Surgical Technique uses were created by Dr. John Chao and it was thereby named officially the Chao Pinhole Surgical Technique.

How is Pinhole Surgical Technique performed?

In order to perform the Pinhole Surgical Technique, there are a few steps that must be taken. To begin, the place where there is recession of the gum is numbed. This happens using a local anesthetic. Depending on how many instances of gum recession need to be treated, there can be one or two small areas of entry that happen. These entry points are about as small as the very tip of a ballpoint pen. These places are made in the gum near the teeth or the tooth that needs to be treated.

When that step is complete, a small instrument that was made by the original doctor is put into that small point on the gum. This helps to loosen the gum material. Slowly, the surgeon will move the gum tissues back into a healthy and normal, standard position. There are tiny collagen strips that are then placed underneath the gums. The collagen is placed through the newly created entry points.

The collagen is intended to help with the healing of the gums and will keep them in place throughout its duration. This treatment can take anywhere between 20 minutes to one hour depending on how many different teeth are needing to be treated. The site of entry will heal quickly; you can barely even see the point of entry the following day.

There is no downtime that is needed for healing so that you can get back to your life. That said, there might be some swelling after the fact.

What are the benefits of Pinhole Surgical Technique?

There are a number of different benefits for getting the pinhole surgical treatment completed. It is a minimally invasive procedure that can provide you with healthier gums in one treatment. See below to learn about a few of the benefits that can come from participating in the Pinhole Surgery Technique by Dr. John Chao.

Less discomfort

Normally after a surgery, especially one in your mouth, there will be a lot of discomfort. That is not so with the pinhole surgery technique. This technique only permits a little bit of swelling after the procedure is done.

Faster recovery

There is no downtime after the pinhole surgery technique and you can get back to doing what you love. Traditional grafting takes a while to heal.

Sutures are needless

You won’t have to experience the discomfort of stitches with the pinhole surgery technique.

There are no invasive tools

You can be more comfortable and less anxious about the procedure; there is no need for the use of a scalpel or any other invasive surgical tools.

No need for uncomfortable tissue grafting

Unlike other types of gum recession surgery, this won’t require taking tissue from the roof of the mouth.

Long-lasting results

When the job is done, the Pinhole Surgery Technique will leave you with a totally natural looking smile.

Conclusion

There are a number of reasons why you should consider Pinhole Surgical Technique surgery for your gum recession. It is not only minimally invasive but the healing time is significantly shorter. You can get back to life as you know it with a more comfortable smile to boot in no time at all.

In our article, we have given you details on the Pinhole Surgical Technique. Are you considering having this done for your gum recession? Have you ever had it done in the past? We want to know about it. Tell us your experience in the comments section found below.

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