Options For Fixing A Dental Implant That's Placed Too High

Dental implants are artificial teeth attached to the jawbone with a strong titanium root used to replace natural teeth that have been lost or damaged due to trauma or periodontal disease. The problem with losing teeth to periodontal disease is that the bone itself is often compromised.

Loss of bone can be fixed with a bone graft, but sometimes the graft doesn't get that section of bone perfectly even with the neighboring bone. This uneven bone can result in a dental implant that looks higher and longer than the natural teeth.

What are the treatment options for fixing a mismatched dental implant that's placed too high?

Use a Crown to Even Things Up

A dental crown is essentially an artificial tooth cap often used to cover natural teeth left open due to a root canal. But dental caps can also be used to make the natural teeth around your raised implant a bit taller.

This works best if the height difference isn't huge and if the teeth in question aren't on full display when you smile. The crowns will help the neighboring teeth look closer in height to the implant. But unless you want to get crowns around your entire mouth, there's still going to be a point at which there's a tooth height difference again. It just hopefully won't be as noticeable.

Receive Veneers for a More Precise Match

Veneers are thin, tooth-colored porcelain or resin composites attached to the front of your teeth to greatly change their appearance. Depending on the level of fixing required, your dentist might have to shave down your natural teeth in order to properly bond the veneer.

Your dentist should be able to use veneers on the surrounding teeth to closely match the height of the implant. But, again, there might still be a step down point elsewhere in your mouth where one tooth is shorter than its neighbor. If you have a series of dental issues, such as your teeth appearing overly small in general, you can opt to have full mouth veneers placed to both match up with the implant and to improve your overall smile.

Remove the Implant and Repair the Bone

Sometimes the easiest route is simply to remove the implant and try to fix the bone problem that's causing the height difference. This might require shaving down excess bone or, in the case of two neighboring implants, doing another bone graft to even things up.

This is a surgical procedure that requires quite a bit of healing time. So don't go this route unless the height difference is substantial, the teeth are highly visible when you smile or the difference is causing problems with your bite.

Talk to a dentist, like one at Anaheim Dentist, to explore your options and find the best course of action for your teeth.