Color of the Dental Crown
One of the first things that people will notice about your teeth is the color. Ideally, we will want to use teeth whitening to get your natural teeth to their best color, then match the dental implant to that color so that your smile looks attractive.
Dental implants also have a challenge in color matching because natural teeth are translucent (partially see-through), and we want to maintain that character in the replacement tooth, without revealing that at the center is not a blood-filled pulp, but a metal or metal-free dental implant. Modern dental crowns can mimic this very well, with subtle gradations of color in the core that simulate the transition to dentin and pulp in your natural teeth.
Placement
Proper placement of your dental implants is crucial to achieving an attractive dental implant. It’s not enough to simply put the implant right where the lost tooth was. The implant is often a different length and width and has to be precisely positioned. Proper positioning of the dental implant will ensure proper spacing and angling of the new tooth.
Often, computer-generated placement guides are used to help guide the placement of the dental implant. None of these systems are fool-proof, however, so it’s important to make sure your implant dentist isn’t a fool. They need to be trained, skilled, and experienced in dental implant placement.
Shape of the Dental Crown
The dental crown is the actual tooth that sits on top of the dental implant. It needs to be shaped in a way that gives it a natural looking, attractive appearance. It needs to be similar to the matching tooth on the other side, but it also needs to have its individual personality. It takes a cosmetic dentist with a great deal of artistic talent to accomplish this difficult balancing act.
Gum Contours around Dental Implants
Managing gum tissue around dental implants is crucial to ensuring that the dental implant looks attractive and natural. The most vulnerable part of the gum tissue is the delicate part that rises between the teeth, known as the papillae. These are often lost in the dental implant procedure. Sometimes, too, the gum tissue around the implant will recede, exposing the implant.
That’s why one of our implant dentists is a periodontist who is skilled at managing your soft tissue around the dental implant. This helps achieve an attractive, natural dental implant appearance.
Gum Coloration
The coloration of your gums can be affected by your dental implant. Your natural tooth is pale in color, but the titanium of most dental implants has a metallic grey color, which can lead to turning gray of the surrounding gum tissue. This can lead to a visible difference in the gum tissue if your gums are thin or translucent.
Achieving proper gum coloration depends on making sure there is adequate bone around the dental implant, and knowing when translucent gum tissue calls for metal-free dental implants.
If you would like to see some examples of attractive dental implant results, please see our smile gallery or contact Rice Dentistry today for a consultation with an Irvine implant dentist.
