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ABSTRACT
The gingival biotype is not only significant factor influencing aesthetic treatment outcome such as dental implant placement, periodontal surgeries such as root coverage and ridge augmentation procedures but also on restorative and orthodontic therapy. They exhibit different pathological responses when subjected to inflammatory, traumatic or surgical insults as gingival biotypes have different gingival and osseous architectures. Therefore identification of the gingival biotype is important in day to day clinical practice as these pathological responses dictate different treatment modalities. Gingival biotype is commonly neglected factor which affects success and failure of the treatment. This review depicts general aspects of gingival biotypes, the various classifications, methods of assessment and clinical considerations of different tissue biotypes.
Key words: Gingival biotype, Gingival bioform, Clinical importance, Periodontal therapy.
Received: 10 August 2018 Revised: 23 September 2018 Accepted: 26 September 2018
INTRODUCTION
Periodontium is the functional unit of the tissues supporting the tooth. It is comprised of four principal components namely the gingiva, the periodontal ligament, the alveolar bone and the cementum. Each of these components is distinct in its location, tissue architecture, biochemical composition and yet, they function together as a single unit. In health, gingiva is the only component of the periodontium which is exposed to the external environment. Along with the covering of the hard palate, it constitutes the masticatory mucosa, a component of oral mucosa, the others being the superficial mucosa (covers the dorsum of the tongue) and the lining mucosa.1
A well scalloped gingival line at the cement-enamel junction (CEJ) of the teeth forms one of the pillars of a beautiful smile. In the aesthetics dentistry, it is of paramount importance that a clinician should be well aware of all the factors that may influence the final aesthetic outcome of a treatment. One such factor that dentist should consider before starting any periodontal, prosthetic and restorative procedure is the "Gingival biotype." which is known to influence the indications and outcomes of various therapies routinely performed in a dental clinic.
The term "gingival phenotype" is used to address the common clinical observation of great variation in the thickness and width of facial keratinized tissue.2,3 Gingival biotype4,5,6 is described as the thickness of the gingiva in the faciopalatal/ faciolingual dimension i.e. it mainly refers to the...