Tooth: Supporting structures (Latin)

Teeth are held in place by the periodontium composed of a variety of supporting structures such as the gum or gingiva, ligamentum periodontale, cementum and textus osseus alveolaris. Integrity of these structures is important since without them, teeth can become loose and eventually detach completely. The gingiva is the external portion of the periodontium surrounding each tooth. It is divided into a gingiva alveolaris (going from the linea mucogingivalis until the level of the junctio cementoenamelea ‘CEJ’ or more specifically, the sulcus gingivalis liber) and a gingiva marginalis (from the sulcus gingivalis liber until the margo gingivalis surrounding the tooth).