Class V cavities are those appearing on the gingival third of the facial and lingual surfaces of all teeth. Class V cavities include those at and beneath the gum line. Gum recession may occur in these areas reducing the natural gum line. Because many of these cavities appear where a patient’s gums should be, it is desired to provide a gum-colored dental composite for filling cavities at or beneath the gum line. To the best of applicants’ knowledge, a gum-colored dental composite has not yet been developed.
In elderly people and those suffering from periodontitus, receding gum lines have the effect of making teeth look longer by extending the clinical crown. It is desired to provide a gum-colored dental composite which can be used on the gingival third of a tooth to cosmetically restore the appearance of the natural gum line to where it was before recession of the gums occurred. Likewise, it is desirable to provide a gum-colored dental composite which can be used to cosmetically improve the appearance of a damaged gum line by its application to the gingival portion of a cavity preparation or directly onto the tooth.
The present invention provides a gum-colored dental composite useful for the restoration of class V cavities and for shortening the appearance of the clinical crown, especially on the facial surface of a tooth. The present invention also provides a cosmetic dental restoration material which can be used to counter the illusion of elongated teeth which occurs when a gum line recedes. The present invention also provides a cosmetic dental restoration material which can be used on a damaged gum line to smooth out the appearance of the gums and give the illusion of a normal gum line. The present invention also provides a kit for chair-side use by a dentist which enables the dentist to prepare a gum-colored dental composite blend having a desired matching shade of pink which can be used on the gingival portion of a tooth.
The gum-colored dental composites of the present invention comprise a mixture of one or more light-curable acrylate resins, a filler, and an amount of red or pink coloring agent sufficient to provide a pink coloration which will custom match a patient’s gum color. The preferred acrylate resins used in the composites of the present invention are methacrylate resins. Of the methacrylate resins, bis-GMA, UDMA and PCDMA are preferred. The fillers of the present invention are preferably silicate fillers such as borosilicate fillers including barium borosilicate. The coloring agents used in the composites of the present invention are preferably FDA red dyes. Other coloring agents including FDA dyes may be used as modifiers to adjust the tint of the color.
The dental restoration kit of the present invention comprises a number of differently shaded pink resin composites and modifiers to achieve shades and tints which fall between the standard shades provided. An infinite number of gum-colored shades can be achieved with the kit of the present invention.
The light-curable dental composite resin/filler blends of the present invention comprise at least a resin component, a filler component and a red or pink coloring agent. Trace amounts of a UV light absorber may also be added to the resin/filler blend to stabilize color. The “resin/filler blend” referred to herein includes the pink or red coloring agent and any other elements which may be used in the dental composite blend.
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