On the relationship between gingival biotypes and supracrestal gingival height, crown form and papilla height

Abstract

To determine the association between gingival biotypes and supracrestal gingival height (primary aim) and its relation to crown shape and papilla height (secondary aim). Eighty adult subjects were evaluated in this study. Based on the transparency of a periodontal probe through the buccal gingival margin, 38 subjects comprised the thin biotype group and 42 subjects comprised the thick biotype group, respectively. Three different parameters were clinically assessed: supracrestal gingival height (SGH) by bone sounding, crown width/crown length ratio and papilla height. No statistical difference (P > 0.05) was detected neither for the correlation between different biotypes (thick/thin) and SGH nor for the association of biotypes and crown width/crown length ratio. Papilla height was only significantly increased (P ≤ 0.05) in the area of teeth no. 21/22 for the thin periodontal biotype. Intra-examiner deviation was found to be very low for all clinical parameters (percentile agreement > 95%). Within the limits of this study, we found that in young Caucasians (i) soft tissue dimensions seem to be similar between biotypes (ii) and the traditional hypothesis that a thick gingiva merges with broad-short crown shape and flat papillae and a thin gingiva with a narrow-long crown shape and high scalloping, may be questionable.