Q: I notice that when my dentist puts in crowns, I notice the edges often do not meet my gum line. Why is this? … Danny K. in Palm Beach
A: You really know how to push a tooth doctor’s buttons. We lye awake at night battling this reality that is one of the most challenging aspects in placing artificial substances (porcelain) next to living, human tissue (ie. your gums).
Sometime an extra step associated with the dental impressions, called a soft tissue model, is needed to get the crowns closer to the gum line. This step instructs the lab to pour two models; one that shows the gum, the other: just the tooth to mount the crown for fabrication.
I prefer the use of digital dental impressions (Google: iTero by Cadent) which takes a 3-D scan to create a single robot-CAD CAM milled model of both teeth AND gums. Some patients have thin gums and will never have aesthetic perfection in this area, but will be hidden from the public by the lips. I will show this technique of an actual case in action at my next seminar. For a short video preview of my next FREE seminar to the public (info below), contact us and I will email you the video.
Editor’s Note: Dr. Josephs will be giving a FREE seminar to the public: “Teeth for Life”: A hi-tech update on the latest techniques in Implant, Cosmetic and General Dentistry. Join us at 10:00 AM at the Double Tree Hotel on PGA Blvd. in Palm Beach Gardens on Friday May 3rd. Only 30 seats remain. Call 561-832-2917 to register today! Free copies of his latest book will be given to all attendees.
Dr. Mitchell Josephs practices Implant Cosmetic and General Dentistry and hosts “Tooth Talk” on WBZT AM123.0 Dr. Josephs is on staff at West Palm Hospital (Formerly Columbia Hospital) and is a Faculty Advisory Board member at McGill University’s Faculty of Dentistry and completed his residency at Manhattan’s Beth Israel Medical Center and Mt. Sinai Hospital.
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drjosephs@palmbeachdentist.com
44 Cocoanut Row, Palm Beach, FL 33480
888-DRTOOTH (888-378-6684)
