Although not aesthetically pleasing, dark lines or rings around dental crowns and veneers are not a problem for your dental health. If you have these dark lines, assuming your appearance is okay, there is nothing you need to do. Unfortunately, if the appearance bothers you, the black lines will not go away unless a specialist dentist replaces the restoration.
What Causes Dark Lines Around Crowns and Porcelain Veneers?
With porcelain veneers and crowns, this darkening of the gumline can occur even when dental hygiene is at its best. There are three reasons for dark lines to form around dental crowns and veneers:
1)Porcelain Fused to Metal
It is an older approach to dental crowns that uses a supporting metal base usually made from a mixture of metals such as gold, platinum, copper, nickel-chromium, or cobalt-chromium. The base helps prevent breakage, protect remaining tooth structure and strengthen the strength of crowns, but often results in black streaks. As porcelain thins near the gumline and the gumline regresses over time, exposing parts of the metal base, causing dark streaks where the metal is visible. Porcelain crowns fused to metal do not transmit light like your natural teeth, causing them to look dull and less natural than their alternative.
All-porcelain crowns transmit light just like a natural tooth and give your smile a more natural look. In addition, since it does not contain metal in completely porcelain crowns, it does not create dark lines on the gums.
2)Cheap Base Metals
Some earlier crown restorations were likely fabricated with a metal base attached to cheap, non-precious components, eventually leaking and causing forging at the gingival margins. Patients who have these inexpensive restorations develop an allergic reaction that causes inflammation of the gums.
3)Unsuitable Crowns or Veneers
If your dental crowns or veneers don’t fit the tooth properly, or around the tooth edges, they accumulate black streaks, which are most close to the gum line. Mismatched restorations like this disrupt the underlying tooth structure caused by infiltrating bacteria and plaque.
How to Repair Dark Lines Around Veneers and Crowns?
Porcelain crowns are stronger and more reliable than previous restorations and do not require metal. Make sure the dentist uses quality porcelain for restorations that give realistic results, such as veneers and crowns. The dentist completely replaces the metal-fused porcelain crown with more modern porcelain crowns. The appearance of dark lines on a dental crown or veneer creates a less than perfect smile and causes a lack of confidence in many. But an imperfect smile isn’t the only byproduct of a poorly made crown or veneer. If you have signs of infection such as swelling of the gums, pain when you bite, temperature sensitivity and fever, you should talk to a specialist dentist about a new porcelain crown or veneer.
