What are dental crowns?
A dental crown is also called a dental cap, or just a cap for short since they are prosthetics that we mold to fit your teeth. These crowns will fit your teeth perfectly and provide a covering over the damaged enamel. Sometimes, dental crowns will fit just over the top portion of your teeth, and at other times, they will replace the entire tooth and fuse with a dental implant to give you a brand new tooth. When covering the tooth with a cap is the best option for the overall health of the mouth, we turn to the dental crown.
There are a number of uses for a dental crown besides repairing damaged teeth. We will begin to consider dental crowns as a solution when the tooth is so far broken down, a normal filling can no longer hold the tooth together and prevent decay. If the tooth fractures or the crack is so deep, the tooth literally needs to be held together, we will then use dental crowns.
In addition to this restorative work, dental crowns can also act as a complete replacement for missing teeth. We can easily fabricate a full dental crown and attach it to the abutment of a dental implant. Since we can use any number of materials, we can make the dental crowns appear extremely realistic to the point where no one will be able to tell that there is a fake tooth.
Most times, it takes two appointments to place dental crowns. One important thing to remember is that dental crowns are a permanent prosthetic, meaning an individual cannot take them out like dentures. We will first file down the teeth to remove any defects or decay and to make room for the dental crowns. Then we will measure the teeth and take detailed imprints to help manufacture the dental crowns.
At the end of this first visit, we will place temporary crowns over the shaved teeth and set your next appointment. At the next appointment, we will attach your permanent crowns and cement them into place once we have a perfect fit.
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