Esthetic 7/8 crown--the Tucker technique.

As restorative dentists, one of the largest challenges we face is to restore proper form and function while considering the impact on the esthetic outcome. One must consider the clinical strengths and weaknesses of various materials and their applicability in different situations. For each clinical situation, there is always a most favorable choice coordinating material and design for optimum physiological, functional and esthetic results. The cast gold 7/8 crown with esthetic buccal margin, as designed and advocated by Dr Richard V Tucker, is an extremely valuable procedure, providing a very long-lasting, esthetically pleasing restoration for extensive involvement of maxillary bicuspid or first molar teeth--particularly in cases where there has been some degree of recession of the buccal or mesial-buccal cusp, while that cusp remains strong and of good stock in the gingival third of the tooth. Under the right circumstances, these teeth can be extensively restored without showing the gold, while leaving the natural color and contours of the buccal cusp and avoiding insult to the gingival tissues from the restoration margin. All of these benefits contribute to esthetics that are superior to porcelain-to-metal or all-ceramic restorations, with less loss of tooth structure and trauma to the pulp.