If you were to describe your smile, what would you say about it? Would mostly positives ring true or would you find that a lot of what you have to say is less than nice? No need to beat up on your smile. If you are dealing with cracks, chips or broken teeth, there is a solution that will give you something to smile about. If you want a healthy, beautiful smile, then it’s time to look into dental crowns.
Understanding Crowns
While dental crowns have been around for a while, they’ve been a common treatment for a reason: they are a tried-and-true way to restore damaged teeth. Dental crowns can fix an array of dental problems:
- To cover a broken or chipped tooth
- To protect a weak tooth from breaking (this weakness could be due to significant dental decay)
- To securely hold a dental bridge
- To hide a dental implant
- To hide a misshapen tooth
- To conceal a significantly discolored tooth
Dental crowns are colloquially referred to as a “cap” since it covers over the tooth to hide any imperfections, giving your smile a much-needed boost. While a dental crown can be made from stainless steel and other metals (like gold), crowns today are often made to mimic the look of a natural tooth. Therefore, the dental crown we will fit you with will be made from porcelain, so it looks most like a real tooth.
If you are a good candidate for crowns, what can you expect from the procedure? The process is very simple and straightforward and only takes two visits.
Your First visit
During the first visit we will prepare the tooth and possibly run X-rays to check the roots and surrounding bone of the tooth to make sure they are healthy and strong. If there is significant decay, we may recommend root canal therapy first and foremost.
The tooth will then be filed down to make room for the dental crown. Using special putty, we will make impressions of the tooth and send it to a lab for fabrication. In the meantime, we will fit your tooth with a temporary crown.
In about two to three weeks, the lab will send back your fabricated crown and it will be time for your second visit.
Your Second visit
The second visit is very simple. Your general dentist will remove the temporary crown and check the fit of the permanent one. If everything looks good, we will numb the area and cement the beautiful new dental cap in place. Isn’t that a reason to smile?
If you’re tired of a chipped or less-than-perfect smile, then dental crowns might just be the answer you’ve been looking for. To find out more, call your local dentist at (808) 734-1099.
Have dental crowns made life a bit easier? If so, we would love to hear how they’ve helped you!