How Accurate Is Shade Matching in Dental Implants?

Dental implants have had a revolutionary impact on dentistry. Not only do they provide a lifetime solution for replacing missing teeth, but they also guarantee that your restorations look exactly like your natural teeth!

If you're considering getting implants, it is quite common to wonder whether they will match your natural teeth. The short answer is yes! In this blog, we will explain more about color matching in dental implants.

How Do Dentists Make Implants Look Natural?

Dentists use several steps to make sure your dental implant looks just like your real teeth:

1. Matching the Color

Dentists use a shade guide to choose a tooth color that matches your natural teeth. This is usually done under natural or soft lighting to get the best match. Sometimes, another dental professional may be asked for a second opinion to be extra sure.

2. Matching the Shape and Size

Once the color is decided, dentists will take digital scans or impressions of your mouth. This helps create an implant crown that matches the shape and size of your nearby teeth. This step is especially important for front teeth, where even small differences can be noticeable.

3. Choosing the Right Material

Two popular implant crown materials are porcelain and ceramic. These materials reflect light in the same way as real teeth, making them look natural.

4. Adding Texture

Skilled dental technicians can copy features like ridges onto your implant crown to make them look as real as possible. This extra detail helps the implant blend in perfectly.

Dental Implants Are Customizable

While dental implants work just as well, or even better, than natural teeth, they also look just as real. What makes them so successful is their customizable nature. Each implant treatment starts with carefully assessing the patient’s oral health. The dentist then creates a personalized treatment plan, ensuring all your functional and aesthetic needs are met.

Some Limitations To Consider

Even though implants look very realistic, there are a few important things to know:

Implants Cannot be Whitened

Prosthetic crown materials do not respond to teeth whitening. If you want whiter teeth, you should whiten your natural teeth before the crown is made. Otherwise, your implant might not match later.

Aging and Staining

Over time, your natural teeth might stain or darken, but the implant will stay the same color. If there is a huge color difference, you might want to replace the crown based on your current color.

Dentist’s Skill and Expertise

How well your implant matches your natural teeth depends heavily on the skill of your dentist and dental lab. A well-trained, detail-focused team will give you the best, most natural results. However, amateur dentists might not be able to replicate the same.

Final Thoughts

When done right, dental implants are nearly impossible to tell apart from real teeth. First, your dentist matches the color using a guide. Then, they take impressions to replicate the same size and structure of the tooth. Finally, tiny details like grooves and ridges are added.

At Get Implant, we supply prosthetic kits designed to match the shade of your natural teeth. Call us at (713) 296-0329 for more information on prices!