Shade guide

The shade of a restoration is selected with the help of the shade guide.

vita ceramic shade guide

Tabs of similar hue are clustered into letter groups :

• A : red-yellow
• B : yellow
• C : grey
• D : red-yellow-grey

The numbers design the chroma : the smaller the number the lighter the chroma.

Technique

A natural tooth shows darker shades towards the gum and lighter shades towards the top. Porcelain reconstructions have the possibility of multiple shade combinations.

• From the shade guide, a base shade that best resembles the remaining teeth is selected. If the remaining teeth have different tones, a shade similar to the adjacent teeth is the best option.

  
  

  

  
  

• For best results, darker shades are selected for the gum (gingival) parts of the tooth and lighter shades for the areas towards the top (occlusal parts).

  A shade or chromatic map can be created. The map is divided into different sections to ensure correct placement of different shades, characterizations and chromatic effects.

  
  

  

  The image above shows a shade map. Observe that, in the upper part (near the gum) the recorded shade is (C2); in the middle of the tooth, a lighter shade (C1) which is normally the base shade and towards the top a light transparent shade (T).

  More than 3 different areas may be created on the shade map; some practitioners recommend dividing the teeth into 9 different sections.

  
  

• To make porcelain restorations less visible (from the other teeth), it is possible to mimic various stains or color changes that are present on adjacent natural teeth : nicotine stains, discolorations, abrasion, color changes caused by tartar and others.

  Various shades for chromatic effects are available in the porcelain kit.

  
  

  

  
  

• Sometimes, because of advanced bone loss or gum recession, the artificial teeth would appear to long and thus unsightly.

  In this situation, a red shade ceramic can be placed in the upper part of the tooth. The ceramic tries to mimic the gums and the tooth appears to have a normal height.

  
  

  

  In the image above a red ceramic was placed in the upper part of a tooth. This way, both central incisors appear to have the same height, which is of great aesthetic importance.

  
  

!!!The ultimate goal is to construct a restoration that will be very difficult to distinguish from the other teeth. It is not advisable to select a too white shade because this will accentuate the "artificial look" of the restoration.