Surgical Services

Flap Surgery

When access to remove disease causing bacteria and toxins is limited by pocket depth, tooth position or other factors, a flap procedure is often used. Under local anesthesia (“numbing”), gum tissue is gently loosened from diseased areas to allow complete removal of any disease causing materials. Gum and bone tissues are preserved with this method. With this conservative method, some pockets greater than 3 millimeters may remain after treatment. This is generally not a problem in long term maintenance.