Biologically oriented preparation technique (BOPT): a new approach for prosthetic restoration of periodontically healthy teeth

Tooth preparations for fixed prosthetic restorations can be done in different ways, basically of two kinds: preparation with a defined margin and the so-called vertical preparation or feather edge. The latter was originally used for prosthetics on teeth treated with resective surgery for periodontal disease. In this article, the author presents a prosthetic technique for periodontally healthy teeth using feather edge preparation in a flapless approach in both esthetic and posterior areas with ceramometal and zirconia restorations, achieving high quality clinical and esthetic results in terms of soft tissue stability at the prosthetic/tissue interface, both in the short and in the long term (clinical follow-up up to fifteen years). Moreover, the BOPT technique, if compared to other preparation techniques (chamfer, shoulder, etc), is simpler and faster when in preparation impression taking, temporary crowns' relining and creating the crowns' profiles up to the final prosthetic restoration.