How to fix Jon Heder's gummy smile

AOL's teen site is running a series called Worst Celebrity Smiles. Here's what they had to say about Jon Heder:



"Jon Heder is not a pretty man. No one can argue that. We loved him as 'Napoleon Dynamite' because the gummy smile went with the thick glasses and curly 'fro. But seeing Jon in real life, dressed up in a tuxedo on the red carpet, just doesn't really work for us. We need him back on the screen as Napoleon to truly appreciate these chompers."

That's a bit harsh, here's what we have to say:

Quite a few patients have come to us over the years to correct this kind of problem. What I see with his particular smile is: too much gum tissue shows when he smiles, his teeth are different sizes, not symmetrical and fairly dark for a young guy.

In simple cases- we just do Invisalign clear braces to straighten, gum lift with a diode laser and whiten with bleach solution.

With more complex cases, Invisalign may not be enough and traditional braces will be needed. We'd still probably need the gum lift and may the help of a Periodontist instead of the laser, but they can give us amazing results.

With REALLY complex cases- braces are needed then orthognathic surgery with an oral surgeon: something called a LeFort osteotomy is done to re-set the upper jaw into better (not so gummy) alignment with the lower jaw.

Thanks for reading,

Dr. Dan Gustavson
Dr. Mai-Ly Ramirez

Fountains Dental Excellence, Roseville, CAA