Dental Crowns: As you age, your teeth will gradually wear down and develop fracture lines in them. A young 20 year old should have no fracture lines in their teeth, however a 60 year old should have multiple. Heavy grinders and bruxers (i.e. people who excessively clench their jaw) will have more fracture lines in their teeth. Teeth with large fillings are more prone to fracture. As a general rule teeth that have more than 60% of their surface as filling are prone to fracture. Our general dentistry services at Dental Essence include the application of crowns that help to repair damaged teeth and prevent further damage.
The dental crown procedure involved removing the outer 1mm of tooth structure to create room for the crown to fit. Once the tooth is prepared, the tooth crown can then be made one of two ways. The traditional laboratory made crowns or the one visit Cerec Crowns using CAD CAM. The laboratory made crowns have excellent colour matching as a dental technician creates the crown, and so are almost always used for the front teeth. As the colour match is not as critical for the back teeth, the Cerec Crown are a suitable option.
Crowns can be made of porcelain, full gold or porcelain fused to metal (PFM). Full gold crowns are used for patients who have a very destructive bite; they are more durable than the porcelain and PFMs. PFM crowns are not frequently used as the all porcelain zirconia and monolith block crowns are just as durable as the PFM.
The disadvantage of the PFM is that you get dark metal shade coming through the gum line of the crown which looks terrible in the front teeth. Most patients undergoing root canal treatment are advised to get crowns as they are always at risk of fracturing. There are some cases where RCT do not need a crown.
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.