Dental crowns serve as artificial caps that restore a damaged tooth’s shape, size, strength, and appearance. When a crown is needed, a significant step involves matching its color to blend seamlessly with your existing natural teeth.
How Crown Shades Are Chosen
Dentists primarily use a shade guide, a collection of sample teeth in various colors, to determine the ideal crown shade. A widely recognized system, the VITA classical A1–D4 shade guide, organizes colors into categories (A, B, C, D) with numbers indicating lightness, darkness, and intensity. More advanced systems offer detailed selection based on lightness, saturation, and hue.
During the shade-matching appointment, dentists often use natural daylight or color-corrected lamps to ensure accurate color perception. The patient may be draped in a neutral color, such as grey, to prevent surrounding colors from influencing the shade choice. The dentist holds the shade guide samples next to the patient’s natural teeth, focusing on the central area of the tooth. To avoid eye fatigue, which can alter color perception, the shade selection is made quickly. The patient’s input is also considered, often by allowing them to confirm the chosen shade alongside slightly lighter and darker options.
Influences on the Final Crown Color
The material chosen for a dental crown significantly impacts its final appearance and how it interacts with light. Materials like porcelain mimic natural translucency and color of tooth enamel, making them a common choice for front teeth where aesthetics are a priority. Zirconia crowns offer durability and strength; however, newer advancements have led to more translucent zirconia options that enhance their aesthetic appeal. E-Max, a type of glass-ceramic, provides a balance of strength and aesthetic properties due to its inherent translucency and ability to reflect light naturally.
The color of the prepared tooth underneath the crown can also influence the final shade, particularly with more translucent crown materials. If the underlying tooth is discolored, it might subtly affect the crown’s perceived color once placed. Consideration of both the crown material and the prepared tooth’s color is part of the planning process.
Patients considering teeth whitening should complete this procedure before their crown is made. Dental crowns are crafted from materials like porcelain, which are permanent in color and do not respond to whitening treatments. If natural teeth are whitened after a crown is placed, the crown will retain its original, darker shade, potentially creating a noticeable mismatch. Dentists recommend waiting at least two weeks after a whitening treatment before the crown is fabricated to allow the natural tooth color to stabilize.