The free autogenous gingival graft.

The free autogenous gingival graft is an excellent surgical procedure for treating gingival extension. It is a procedure that can be performed rapidly with little postoperative trauma to the patient. Its greatest feature is the high degree of predictability of success in producing a specific dimension of masticatory mucosa. However, we have a moral and ethical obligation to our patients to be more selective in its use in treating gingival recession. Too many patients have been subjected to unnecessary surgery, especially in cases in which the recession has been of long duration and is stable. In the maintenance of such cases, surgical intervention should be elective to solve problems of maintenance of the dentoginginval junction as they arise. As a result of the innovations from the 1970s, the gingival graft procedure appears to be extremely versatile. It will probably undergo further innovative developments in the future as a procedure to be extremely helpful to the restorative dentist. We have already seen its use in new attachment procedures, for improving the edentulous ridge for denture prosthesis, and in other restorative procedures.