Utilization of Buccal Free Gingival Graft to Restore the Peri‐Implant Soft Tissue Texture and Color Match in the Esthetic Zone: A Case Report With 3 Years Follow‐Up

This case report represents soft tissue management around a dental implant in the upper lateral incisor area in a young female with a high esthetic demand and excessive gingival display. During implant placement, a soft tissue augmentation utilizing connective tissue graft was conducted to augment the interproximal papilla around the implant. However, the coronally flap advancement resulted in mucogingival distortion and a lack of a sufficient amount of keratinized mucosa around the dental implant. In order to achieve an aesthetically acceptable color and texture match, a free gingival graft (FGG) was harvested from the buccal gingival tissue in the premolar site instead of the palatal site. In the follow-up visits, the mucosa around the implant was quite comparable to the gingiva around the adjacent teeth. It seems that the "buccal gingiva" can be considered as the first choice of donor site for FGG in the esthetic zone.