Abutment – is an integral part of the implant system, the connecting element, which provides attachment of a tip of a tooth-crown, as well as overhanging the gum removable or fixed bridge structure to the placed implant. To achieve the most comfortable state when restoring missing teeth and perfect evenness of dentition, abutments of different shapes, sizes are used which characterized by the type of material and placement methods. They may have different angulations and serve as adapters for structures with different placement requirements. What type of abutment should be selected? How and when are they placed? What are certain types of abutments used for?
Since the abutment is used for optimal regulation of the position of the restored tooth in the dentition, then the requirements to its design can be very specific, so they are divided into standard, which are made with the same requirements and individual, made accounting certain characteristics of the bite or other needs of the clinical situation of each patient. The use of individual abutments allows to take into account all the nuances and peculiarities of your implant situation as their attachment to the integrated implant is the final stage of surgery and it is done after bone- implant healing and requires the formation of the gum around for maximum comfort and naturalness. But there are abutments which are integral with the implant endosteal part and placed simultaneously. The choice of standard, individual or implant- integrated abutment depends on indications, financial preferences and results of the checkup.
A selection of abutment is performed considering the shape and thickness of the mucous membrane, the distance between the teeth, the aesthetic problems and selecting types of attachment to implants. All this dictates the conditions for the production of various kinds of abutment designs.
– Standard abutment has 6 different options of length and 2 options of angulation 45 and 20 degrees depending on the indications.
– Angled abutment allows using different angles to make the most natural artificial dentition.
– Healing abutment or “cap” – temporary abutment or “cover” creates a protection against infection in the wound above the placed implant during healing and enables to select the size of permanent abutment more accurately.
– Ball abutment is required when fixing a dental bridge on implants
– Straight abutment – a classic design that meets the various requirements of dental implantation.
Modern top companies of implant systems manufacturing provide catalogues for optimal selection of their products, presenting all main types of abutments for different clinical situations and requirements of the implant surgeon. It is your implant surgeon who will recommend and help you to make a final decision about the selection of the abutment, guided by indications, the initial situation, tasks of dental implant procedure and your wishes.