What are Dental Crowns: Procedure, Types, Materials, & Benefits
July 5, 2022

Dental Crowns Explained

Tooth caps, alternatively called dental crowns, placed atop damaged teeth help protect and restore the shape of your teeth when fillings are inadequate to resolve the problem. Metals, porcelain, resin, and ceramics help make dental crowns. Crowns do not require special attention over time besides regular good oral hygiene.

Over time, your teeth sustain damage for various reasons, such as tooth decay, injuries, and regular overuse. The damage causes your teeth to lose shape and size. Dental crowns resemble tooth-shaped caps placed over the damaged tooth and fit like a snug hat restoring the tooth’s strength, appearance, size, and shape.

When Do Dental Crowns Become Necessary?

You might require a dental crown to protect a weak tooth from breaking apart or keeping it together if the tooth has broken parts. You can restore a broken tooth or one severely worn from use. Dental crowns help cover and support a tooth with extensive fillings without sufficient tooth structure. You can also cover a misshapen or severely discolored tooth.

Besides, the above dental crowns help hold dental bridges in place and cover dental implants if you have missing teeth. In addition, if you have recently undergone endodontic therapy to eradicate dental pulp infections within your tooth, the treatment renders your tooth fragile, needing a dental crown for protection.

Different Types and Materials of Dental Crowns

Different materials help make permanent dental crowns customized by a dental laboratory to match your surrounding teeth. The materials include:

Metals

Several metals are helpful for making dental crowns, including gold, nickel, palladium, and chromium. Metal crowns are durable because they rarely chip or break, last the longest, and do not require extensive tooth structure removal. Metals can also withstand the chewing and biting forces and are an excellent choice for molars.

Porcelain Fused to Metal

Matching porcelain fused to metal crowns is convenient with the color of the teeth neighboring the crown. These crowns have a natural tooth color. Unfortunately, the metal below the porcelain crown cap sometimes becomes visible as a dark line. The chances of the porcelain crown chipping, breaking, or wearing the teeth opposing the dental crown also exist. Porcelain fused to metal crowns is an excellent choice for the front and back teeth.

All Resin

Dental crowns fabricated from all resin are inexpensive compared to other types. Unfortunately, they tend to wear down with time and are likely to damage faster than porcelain fused to metal crowns.

All Porcelain Crowns

All porcelain crowns deliver the best color match than other varieties. They are also optimal if you have metal allergies but don’t have the strength like porcelain fused to metal crowns. However, these crowns are excellent for the front teeth.

The Procedure for Dental Crowns

You must schedule at least two visits to our crown dentist near you when preparing for a dental crown.

During your first visit, our dentist in 75061 examines the tooth needing the crown by taking x-rays of the tooth and bone surrounding it. If your tooth has decay, injury to the dental pulp, and risk of infections, our dentist might recommend root canal treatment before your dental crown procedure. However, if everything is acceptable, our dentist starts the process by numbing the tooth and the gums surrounding the area to file it down on the tops and sides to accommodate the dental crown.

After reshaping the tooth, dental crowns impressions the tooth receiving the crown besides the teeth above or below to ensure the crown doesn’t affect your bite. You receive an acrylic crown over the tooth, and the dental laboratory receives impressions to fabricate your customized restoration.

Our dentist calls you to revisit their practice after the dental laboratory returns your permanent restoration. During the second appointment, our dentist starts the procedure by removing the temporary acrylic crowns before checking the color and fit of the permanent cap. If the crown is acceptable, our dentist cements the crown over the damaged tooth.

The Lifespan of Dental Crowns

Five to 15 years is the average lifespan of dental crowns. How much wear and tear dental crown is exposed to determine its lifespan. Your dental hygiene and mouth-related habits also contribute to the lifespan of dental crowns. Therefore you must remain cautious not to use your teeth to chew ice, bite fingernails, and open packages or bottles.

Benefits of Dental Crowns

Here are some advantages of dental crowns:

  • Dental crowns don’t need special attention besides good oral hygiene.
  • It helps if you remember you must protect the underlying tooth from decay and gum disease, especially around the area where the crown meets your gums. Therefore you must indulge in brushing your teeth twice a day, flossing them at least once, and getting six monthly dental exams and cleanings from our dentist.
  • Dental crowns resemble your natural teeth and appear similar to them. Therefore, if you have tooth damage, you find it beneficial to get your tooth restored in a couple of meetings.

Visit a Crown Dentist Near You

Are you looking for dental crowns in Irving, TX? Give us a call or book an appointment with us at Sterling Dental Center today!

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