Understanding Dental Crowns
If you’ve recently broken a tooth or had an old, large filling fall out, it can cause a lot of pain or embarrassment. Without addressing the problem, your brittle tooth could continue to break down even further. Fortunately, rather than having your tooth removed, we can preserve it with a full-coverage crown.
Instead of “filling” the damaged portion of the tooth, a dental crown encases all visible surfaces of a tooth above the gumline. We generally recommend these customized restorations for instances involving:
- Large cavities
- Root canal treatments
- Fractures/injuries to the tooth
- Restoring dental implants
With a crown, your tooth can continue functioning normally without additional fractures or wear.
What to Expect When Rebuilding Your Smile With a Crown
Once your dentist has determined whether or not you need to have a crown, your treatment will likely be phased out over two separate visits.
During the first appointment, an impression or digital image is taken and the tooth is prepped. Next, we send the model of your tooth to our lab, where a customized porcelain crown is handcrafted to match your neighboring teeth. About 10-14 days later, your permanent crown will be ready to bond into place.
Delaying your crown could pose problems to your tooth, allowing it to break down so that it is no longer restorable. Covering the weak structure allows you to get several more years out of your smile, without the extra risk of tooth loss.
Call Laguna West Dental Care in Elk Grove today to schedule a consultation. We will be happy to review your options with you and explain how you could personally benefit from dental crown.