Abstract

MACEDO, Marcela de Paula; CASTRO, Bárbara Silva de; PENIDO, Sérgio Milton Martins de Oliveira  and  PENIDO, Cláudia Valéria de Sousa Resende. Upper labial frenectomy in patient wearing dental braces: a clinical case report. RFO UPF [online]. 2012, vol.17, n.3, pp. 332-335. ISSN 1413-4012.

Introduction: The hypertrophic labial frenulum may difficult hygiene, restrict labial movements, allow biofilm accumulation, and affect phonetics. It may also cause esthetic dissatisfaction for the patient, as well as a midline diastema. In dental literature there are still some controversies about the diagnosis, causes, consequences, and treatment of such alteration. Objective: The aim of this article is to present a clinical case of a 9 year-old patient in the initial stage of mixed dentition with hypertrophic upper labial frenulum and midline diastema. Case report: surgical removal of the labial frenulum during orthodontic treatment was recommended. The frenectomy technique chosen was Archer's, also known as double clamping. The reason for surgery was the presence of fibrous upper labial frenulum, which if maintained would not allow the stability of the case after closing the midline space. Moreover, there was not enough space for eruption of the maxillary left lateral incisor. Final considerations: In this case the effectiveness of the treatment could be observed due to the closing of the midline diastema, the eruption of the permanent lateral incisor, and the absence of recurrence.

Keywords : Labial frenulum.; Diastema.; Gingival recession..