ceramic abutment

[michael v]

Hello,

I have three missing front lower teeth. My dentist did two implant for a bridge for the three teeth, four months ago. Now he is putting on the two black abutments on the implants. I read online that black abutments will leave a black line at the gum line and that won't make my teeth look good. So I ask for ceramic abutments instead . My dentist tell me that he cannot use ceramic abutments because that will make the bridge weaker .

Can we use ceramic abutments for the bridge ?
Can I do one more implant in the middle of the bridge and do three crowns on top, instead of the bridge so I can have ceramic abutments ?
Do Implant + abutment + crown have to go together ?
Do we have to remove the old implant root to put in the new implant to go with the new abutment or new crown ?
Thank you.

[Dr Mohsen J. Esfahani]

Thank you for your post.

Its not necessarily the case that titanium abutments will leave a black line on the gum and if the implants are positioned correctly with adequate bone around them, the abutment will not be exposed.

Ceramic abutments are more brittle than titanium abutments and I can understand your dentists worries regarding the problems that could arise if ceramic abutments are supporting a bridge especially in the back of the mouth.

To change the plan now from a two implant supported bridge to three implant supported crowns might be possible, if you have enough space and bone for the third implant. Dont forget its very difficult to have scalloped gum margin between three implant supported crowns and easier to achieve this with a bridge.

A complete implant requires an implant and an abutment and a crown. You can also have two implants and two abutments and a bridge. Without an abutment the crown or the bridge cant attach to the implant.

Its going to be difficult and costly to remove implants once they have integrated and if you find that you dont have enough space for the third implant, you might be better off accepting two implants and a bridge.

[zirconiaabutment.com]

I read your post and do not feel that your doctor is correct in stating that a ceramic abutment or implant bridge is not as strong as titanium. There are several factors to making a zirconia implant bridge that can give it the strength that is required for a lower jaw. One way is to use metal connectors that engage into the zirconia abutments or implant bridge and non engage into the implant site. Have your doctor email us or you can email me and I will send you a picture of what I am talking about-

As for "black abutments" this is probably a titanium abutment and as the previous response stated it is for thin tissue where a zirconia abutment is most widely used. There are advantages and disadvantages to both zirconia and titanium solutions and the dentist and patient need to weigh each.

I look forward to hearing from you so I can send you pictures.

Sincerely,
Keith Goldstein
info@zirconiaabutment.com