Gummy Smile

The gummy smile – also called gum smile – is a common problem among both men and women. Many people with this problem feel insecure because of the gums that are visible. As a result, they often laugh with one hand in front of their mouth. A gummy smile treatment with a muscle relaxant offers a solution in these cases. Thanks to this treatment, you can laugh wide openly without fear of visible gums.

The gummy smile is often congenital. Usually, this is already visible during childhood. Many people think that the gummy smile is caused by too small teeth, but in most cases, the problem is in the muscles around the lips. The gummy smile is visible through overdeveloped lifting muscles in the upper lip. Because the lift muscles over-activate, the upper lip pulls up too much. This causes an unnatural smile, whereby the gums become visible. Thanks to treatment with a muscle relaxant, the muscles contract less. This keeps your smile natural without changing your facial expression.

Before undergoing treatment, a free, no-obligation consultation with one of the plastic surgeons will take place. In advance, you will have received a digital medical questionnaire with questions about your own health. This way, the plastic surgeon can assess whether you qualify for a gummy smile treatment. During the consultation, the plastic surgeon will discuss the many aspects of the treatment with a muscle relaxant with you. He will pay extensive attention to your wishes and questions. In addition, he will explain the treatment, the expected result, the aftercare and possible risks of the treatment. The plastic surgeon will give you well-considered and honest advice. If you agree with the treatment proposal, the plastic surgeon will take pictures of your mouth, so that you can assess the result thoroughly afterwards. The photos will be safely stored in your medical file. He will also ask you to sign a treatment agreement.

No surgery is required to treat the gummy smile. With a simple muscle relaxant treatment, the problem can be adequately solved. Our plastic surgeons use very fine needles, so the injection of the muscle relaxant only feels like a pinprick. An anaesthetic is therefore not necessary for the treatment with a muscle relaxant. In total, only two pinholes are needed to cure the gum smile. The procedure takes 5 to 10 minutes. Thanks to the muscle relaxant, the lifting muscles will relax better. This ensures a beautiful smile without visible gums. Exactly how much muscle relaxant is used in your lift muscles depends on the strength of the muscle. The more active and stronger the muscle, the more muscle relaxant it will take to reduce the lifting of the upper lip. The amount of muscle relaxant used in your situation therefore strongly depends on the intensity of the lift muscles. A natural result comes first.

After the treatment of the gummy smile has taken place, the skin may swell for 1 to 2 hours and become slightly red. This pulls away the same day. The stimulus transfer from the nerves to the muscles is stopped, so the muscles have to get used to the new situation. There may also be occasional bruising in the treated area. This pulls away after a few days and is easy to camouflage. After the treatment, you can go home immediately. The next day you will be fully presentable. Cooling of the lips is not necessary. However, our plastic surgeons recommend that you keep your head upright as much as possible for 2 hours after the treatment with a muscle relaxant. Lying down or bending down may affect the intended result. Intensive exercise or yoga is not recommended on the day of the procedure.

A few days after the treatment, you will notice that the upper lip does not pull up as much when smiling. This creates a natural smile without you losing your facial expression. After a few days, the first effect of the treatment is visible. For some people, it may take longer before the effect is visible. Within 1 to 2 weeks, you will have a natural smile without having to worry about too many visible gums. The result will remain visible for about 3 to 6 months. After that, it is possible to repeat the treatment. As the treatment with a muscle relaxant is performed more frequently, the efficacy remains longer effective. At the final check-up, pictures of the mouth are again taken and added to your medical file. This allows you to clearly see the results of the treatment. Even if the procedure is repeated, the photos from the medical file can serve as a guideline for the result to be achieved.

Treatment of the gummy smile with a muscle relaxant is considered very safe with little risk. At Betan Clinics, plastic surgeons only use muscle relaxants from trusted and recognized manufacturers. The muscle relaxant used has been used and extensively tested by millions of plastic surgeons worldwide. After treatment, the skin may be somewhat red and swollen. This pulls away the same day. There is a small chance that the muscle relaxant inadvertently weakens other nearby muscles. This can briefly cause a slight asymmetry in the face. Usually, this can be easily remedied. In an exceptional case, you will have to wait until the muscle relaxant has worn off. You do not have to worry that the gum smile will return worse after the muscle relaxant has worn off. The opposite is often true. Because you haven’t used the lifting muscles for a longer period of time, you may lose the ability to pull them up.