When it comes to dental implants, many people are familiar with them. However, when it comes to dental implant abutments, a lot of people don’t understand them and also have no idea what the abutments are used for. Today, I’m going to popularize the knowledge about dental implant abutments for everyone, and at the same time, share with you how to choose the materials of dental implant abutments.
As we all know, the structure of a dental implant is divided into three parts: the implant (artificial tooth root), the abutment (connector), and the dental crown (tooth).
What is a dental implant abutment?
A dental implant abutment, abbreviated as an abutment, is an intermediate part that connects the dental implant and the upper dental crown.
It is the part of the artificial implant that is exposed outside the mucous membrane. Its function is to provide support, retention, and stability for the dental crown of the superstructure.
For example, when we build a house, we need to construct the beam first to support the floor and the eaves. And the abutment plays the role of the beam.
At present, in the field of stomatology, there are a wide variety of dental implant abutments with complex classifications. However, the commonly used ones are pure titanium abutments and all-ceramic abutments.
The Differences between Pure Titanium Abutments and All-Ceramic Abutments
Pure Titanium Abutments
As is well known, pure titanium is an excellent material that combines good biocompatibility, durability, and strength. It has been clinically verified over several decades, and the success rate of implants using it is relatively high.
Moreover, it has good wear resistance and corrosion resistance, and has a relatively small impact on the oral cavity. Therefore, it is widely used.
All-ceramic Abutments
All-ceramic materials have good light transmittance and luster, which highly meets the aesthetic requirements and offers excellent aesthetics.
In addition, all-ceramic materials have relatively good corrosion resistance, which is a significant advantage that cannot be matched by other materials.
Therefore, the restoration with “all-ceramic abutments combined with all-ceramic crowns” can achieve a relatively aesthetically pleasing result.
How to choose between pure titanium abutments and all-ceramic abutments?
1.In terms of aesthetics
Pure titanium abutments are made of metallic materials, and they do not have an advantage in aesthetic restoration. The metallic inner crown is likely to discolor over time.
When using pure titanium abutments, the gingival soft tissue needs to be more than 3mm thick to ensure that the metallic color will not be exposed. If the thickness of the gingival soft tissue is only 2mm, an all-ceramic abutment should be used.
2.In terms of hardness
Compared with pure titanium abutments, all-ceramic abutments have a lower hardness, are relatively brittle, and are prone to chipping of the porcelain.
3.In terms of application
Generally, in order to ensure aesthetics, the advantages of choosing all-ceramic abutments for anterior tooth restoration are quite obvious, and the overall result is also relatively good. Pure titanium abutments are more suitable for the restoration of posterior molars.
4.In terms of price
The cost of all-ceramic abutments is slightly higher than that of pure titanium abutments.
In general, both pure titanium abutments and all-ceramic abutments have their own advantages and disadvantages. Which type of material for the dental implant abutment to choose specifically needs to be determined according to each person’s specific situation, and it also needs to be decided based on the tooth-missing site and the hospital and doctor selected!
