Guided tissue healing for single-tooth implants

The emergence profile of a single-tooth implant abutment has a significant effect on the esthetics of the final restoration. Most healing abutments are cylindrical, unlike the nonround contours of the natural teeth being replaced. The resulting peri-implant sulcus is round rather than having the correct anatomic cross-sectional shape. This disparity may compromise the ideal emergence profile of the final restoration. This article presents a technique in which a custom abutment and provisional crown or the definitive restoration can be placed at second-stage surgery to guide tissue healing to optimum form and esthetics.