Procedure for Gum Biopsy and its Benefits
A gum biopsy is a medical procedure in which the doctor will remove tissue samples from the gums which will then be sent to the laboratory for testing. Gingiva is another word for the gums, so a dental biopsy is also called a gingival biopsy. Gingival tissue is the tissue that surrounds and supports your teeth. The doctor will do a dental biopsy to diagnose the cause of abnormal gum tissue. These causes include oral cancer and also growth or lesions that are not cancerous.
Types of Dental Biopsy
There are several types of dental biopsies namely incisional biopsy, excision biopsy, percutaneous biopsy, and brush biopsy.
- Incisional Biopsy
Incisional biopsy of the gum is the most common gum biopsy method to examine the characteristic features of gum inflammation. The doctor will remove some of the suspicious tissue and examine it under a microscope. A pathologist will be able to determine whether there are cancer cells in the gum tissue that are removed and can also verify the origin of the cell if it has spread to the gums from other areas of the body.
- Excision Biopsy
During excision gum biopsy, the doctor will remove all growth or lesions if suspected gum disease is the first sign of cancer. This type of biopsy will usually be used to remove small lesions that are still easily accessible. The dentist will then remove the growth along with some healthy tissue nearby.
- Percutaneous Biopsy
Percutaneous biopsy is a procedure in which the doctor will insert a biopsy needle into the skin and there are two types of it; fine needle biopsy and core needle biopsy. Fine needle biopsy is used both for lesions that are easily seen and felt, whereas core needle biopsy provides more tissue than fine needle biopsy. This is useful when there is more tissue needed by the doctor to make a diagnosis.
- Brush Biopsy
This biopsy is a noninvasive procedure in which the doctor will collect the tissue by forcibly rubbing the joint into the area of the abnormal gum as for overcoming the gum abscess. This biopsy often becomes the doctor’s first step if the symptoms do not require an immediately more invasive biopsy. This is used as an initial evaluation and if the test shows a suspicious or abnormal cell or cancer, the doctor is likely to do an incision or percutaneous biopsy to confirm the diagnosis.
Benefits of Gum Biopsy Test
A gum biopsy is useful for testing abnormal or suspicious gum tissue. Your doctor may recommend an additional diagnose to find other things such as:
- Patch white or red on the gums.
- Boils on the gums.
- Gum lesions or lesions that occur for more than two weeks.
- The cause of swollen gums that does not disappear.
- Changes in the gums that cause teeth or other types of dentures to lose.
A gum biopsy is also used in conjunction with imaging test findings to help doctors reveal the stage of gum cancer if there is one. These imaging tests include CT scans, X-rays, and MRI.
Information from the biopsy of the gum along with the imaging test will diagnose gum cancer as early as possible so that there will be fewer injuries from tumor removal and higher survival rates.
Gums Biopsy Preparation
Generally, before doing a biopsy of the gum, it does not need much preparation. Tell your doctor if you take prescription or over-the-counter drugs or even herbal supplements and discuss how this should be used before and after the examination.
Some drugs may affect gum biopsy including blood clotting drugs such as blood thinners and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and aspirin because they can cause gum inflammation. The doctor will also give special instructions if you use some of these drugs. In addition, you may need to stop consuming food several hours before the biopsy is done.
Recovery of Gum Biopsy
After a biopsy of the gums to check for unhealthy gum signs, then numbness in the gums will disappear and you can resume normal activities and diet on the same day. During recovery, the biopsy site may be painful for several days. Your doctor will probably ask you not to brush your teeth around the site for one week. If you receive a stitch, you may have to go back to the doctor to remove the suture.
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