Ovate Pontic
Dr. Hall,
My dentist says he can't use an ovate pontic for my
dental bridge because the ridge of gum is healed, and this technique is
only used when there is a freshly extracted tooth. Is that true? Is there
another technique that can make my tooth look like it is growing out of
the gum so it is more natural?
—Brenda from Florida
Brenda,
The ovate pontic technique is primarily used when
the ridge is fully healed, as in your situation. But it is common, when
you present a technique to your dentist that he or she isn't too familiar
with, for the dentist to deflect your request by saying that it won't work
in your situation. I hear this all the time.
The photographs below show the ovate pontic
technique. In the "before" photo, the tooth had been missing for years,
and the ridge was fully healed. The gum tissue was surgically sculpted to
prepare it for receiving the false tooth.
 |
 |
Here is a photograph of teeth prepared for bridgework,
with the sculpted ovate pontic site. |
Here are the same teeth, with the bridge in place.
The tooth in the middle, the lateral incisor, is a false
tooth and is an ovate pontic. This work was performed by Dr. Hall. |
Your approach here is a common mistake people make.
It is easy to think you can research a technique on the Internet and then
tell your dentist about it and get him or her to use this technique. But
this doesn't
work--there’s a steep learning curve for most of these techniques, and there has to
be a passion for appearance-related issues that the dentist feels. These
cosmetic dentistry techniques aren't hidden. Your dentist has probably
heard about this technique but hasn't taken the trouble to become familiar
with it enough to use it.
A dentist who really knows how to do the ovate
pontic technique will want to use it for most anterior bridge cases. Only
when the bone has shrunk drastically can this technique not be used. And
even then, there are "ridge-plumping" techniques that can build up the
ridge, if appearance is important enough to the patient.
- Dr. Hall
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