Management of gingival hyper pigmentation with ablative and non-ablative lasers
Background: Although physiologic melanin pigmentation is not considered a medical disorder, the appearance of pigmented gingival exhibits esthetic problem especially for those who have gummy smile. Several treatment modalities have been suggested in the literature like- Bur abrasion, scalpel method, cryotherapy, electrosurgery and lasers.

Clinical Implications: Depigmentation with laser has been recognized as one of the most effective, comfortable and reliable techniques. Different laser wavelengths have been used for gingival depigmentation including carbon dioxide, diode, Nd:YAG, Er:YAG and Er:Cr:YSSG with varied success. Two different approaches, surgical and non-surgical were suggested to use laser in the management hyperpigmentation.

Conclusions: Taking into account the advantages of using lasers, it seems to be that both surgical and non-surgical laser technique were reliable and effective for management melanin hyper pigmented gingiva. Patient's evaluation with postoperative pain and healing found the non-ablative laser was superior. Whereas the quality of the aesthetic results and complete elimination of pigments were superior in ablative approach.

Learning Objectives
• Understand the color of the gingiva is an important component overall esthetics.
• Evaluate and compare two different laser treatment techniques (surgical /non surgical) to perform gingival melanin depigmentation.
• Compare the efficacy of different laser wavelengths in removal of gingival pigments with different laser settings.