The dark blue spots on this patient's gum tissues are called amalgam tattoos. Our patient wanted to remove the discolorations, which occur when amalgam (silver alloy and mercury) becomes incorporated into the tissues during root canals or while placing amalgam fillings. Luckily, those procedures are not commonly used today.
The tattoos were surgically excised, and an AlloDerm® soft-tissue graft was used to fill the void. All traces of the amalgam were surgically removed to prevent reappearance of any discoloration. Following healing, porcelain crowns completed this transformation.
