One of the featured topics at the Nobel Biocare Global Symposium this year was making implant restorations as esthetic as possible. No longer is simply restoring function sufficient to please patients. Instead, patients want implant restorations that look and feel just like their natural teeth. At the symposium, a full day was spend on restoring just anterior teeth.
One of the keys to good looking implant restorations is placing the implant in precisely the right position. This takes skill, knowledge and experience. However, placement in the right position is not always possible due to a lack of bone. Therefore, the surgeon needs to know where to place the implant and know if there is enough bone.
That is where the latest technology of Cone Beam CT (CBCT) comes in. Even before starting the surgery, we can plan everything on a computer: where the tooth should be and what it should look like, where the implant depth and angulation should be. All this information makes the surgery easier for the patient and for the surgeon.
A thorough understanding of what is esthetically pleasing is also important for the surgeon. The bottom line is that the more you know, the more you plan, the better the esthetic results for the patient.