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Metal crowns have the longest durability of any crown material.
The dentist will examine your tooth to look for signs of decay that may need to be removed. We will determine if your tooth can be salvaged with a crown or if you will require other treatment.
To create enough space for a crown to slip over the top of a tooth, we need to file down your enamel around all sides of the tooth. Your tooth will be reshaped so that it is smaller and thinner.
After prepping your tooth, impressions will be taken and sent to a lab that will use this as a mold to create your custom crown.
Fabrication of your crown can take a few weeks. While you wait, you will receive a temporary crown to protect your tooth.
Once your crown is ready at our office, you’ll return so we can remove the temporary crown. You can let us know if you’re happy with the fit and appearance of the crown before we bond it to your enamel.
A lab-made crown is a dental crown that is designed and created with the help of a lab technician from an outside lab. At our dental office, we examine your tooth, prep the tooth, and take impressions and digital scans.
These are sent to the outside dental lab so that they can complete the actual construction of the dental crown using our scans and impressions. Your crown will be matched to the shade of your natural teeth using a shade guide if you prefer a tooth-colored crown.
You will also have many materials to choose from, including porcelain, ceramic, metal, zirconia, or porcelain-fused-to-metal. Lab-made crowns are superior in durability, strength, and versatility in comparison to CEREC crowns.
Digital x-rays are fast, comfortable, and safe. High-resolution images help us make more accurate diagnoses while exposing you to a fraction of the radiation used by traditional film x-rays. Most patients will get one or two full sets of x-rays each year, but additional imaging may be recommended one if you have a potential issue or if you have experienced a dental emergency.
Fluoride treatments are easy to add to any routine preventive visit, and are great for helping keep dental decay at bay. After your cleaning, your dentist will apply a fluoride-rich varnish or gel to your teeth, and leave it in place for several minutes before rinsing it away. Fluoride helps to strengthen your enamel through a process called “remineralization,” which works by attracting minerals like calcium and phosphates to your teeth, helping to restore their hardness and increase their resistance to acids.
Dental sealants are most commonly recommended for children who may be high-risk for tooth decay, but they’re also a great option for patients of any age who wish to protect themselves from developing cavities. A relatively straight-forward procedure, dental sealants start with the application of dental resin, usually to the rear teeth, as they have more grooves and uneven surfaces where plaque and bacteria can easily hide. A UV light will be used to cure the resin, hardening it and creating a powerful barrier between your enamel and food debris, acid, or bacteria. When applied correctly, dental sealants can last for years!
Many patients struggle with gum disease, and if left untreated, can risk losing their teeth and other problems. Gingivitis is the first stage of gum disease, and is the only stage that can actually be reversed with deep cleanings and attentive at-home hygiene. If you have gum disease, keeping up with your regular cleanings and checkups will help you gain control over your oral health before it’s too late!
For patients with more advanced stages of periodontitis, we recommend scheduling deep cleanings at more frequent intervals, usually every three to four months. Although the effects of advanced gum disease can’t be reversed, deep cleanings, scaling, and root planing can halt the progression of periodontitis and help preserve your oral health.
Oral cancer screenings are an important part of every preventive care visit. Catching oral cancer in its early stages allows us to stop it before it spreads, and can save your life. That’s why we’ll always check for signs of oral cancer at every preventive visit.
Your dentist will examine your oral tissues, like your gums and tongue, keeping an eye out for abnormalities like lesions, lumps, discolorations. If we find anything unusual, we’ll take a biopsy and send it out to a specialist for a thorough analysis. Although oral cancer isn’t overly common, it’s important to remain proactive and consistent with your oral healthcare routine, so we can identify any issues before they become major problems.
Teeth grinding and clenching while sleeping is a common issue faced by many patients. Night guards are a great solution for this unconscious clenching, also known as bruxism. Night guards form a soft barrier that protects your teeth from damage caused by the pressure of clenching and grinding. Your dentist will take an impression or a scan of your teeth and gums to create a unique mold that will be sent to a dental lab, where your night guard will be custom-crafted. Night guards work by easing the tension in your jaw, alleviating the painful headaches and other side effects of clenching and grinding, so you can get the sleep you need and keep your teeth from wearing down.
Sports mouth guards are worn over the teeth, just like night guards. However sports guards are designed specifically to protect your smile from dental injuries that are so common when playing high-intensity impact sports. Custom-fitted sports guards can help protect athletes from oral trauma caused by collisions to the mouth, face, and head. If you play football, basketball, baseball, soccer, rugby, hockey, gymnastics, mountain biking, or other activities that put you at risk for injury due from falls, body contact, or flying objects, ask us about getting fitted for a custom sports guard today! Tailored to fit your unique smile, sports guards are comfortable, durable, and won’t stop you from playing the sports you love.
Porcelain crowns are the most desired crowns for the front teeth.
Plenty of factors determine the longevity of dental crowns, but these fixtures usually last five to fifteen years. Ceramic crowns are the most durable type of dental crown and can last fifteen years or more. Acrylic crowns last the shortest time and are only suitable for aesthetic rather than functional reasons.
Factors influencing the longevity of your dental crowns include your oral hygiene and dietary habits. Dental crowns will likely last a shorter time for people with bruxism since the teeth grinding wears down the crowns faster. Habits like smoking also accelerate the deterioration of dental crowns.
Getting a dental crown is, at most, mildly painful. That’s because the dentist will use a local anesthetic, usually lidocaine or epinephrine, to numb the nerves in and around the affected tooth. These anesthetics block pain signals from the nerve to the brain, thus ensuring a painless procedure.
That said, patients might still experience movement and pressure during the procedure. This is perfectly normal and doesn’t mean the anesthetic isn’t working or wearing off. You may also feel slight pain after the procedure, which you can manage with OTC painkillers or a cold compress.
Taking good care of your dental crowns is important for their longevity. Proper dental crown care involves brushing and flossing your teeth regularly and using mouthwash to rinse your mouth after doing so. It also entails scheduling regular dental visits to preserve your dental health and ensure the structural integrity of your crowns.
Additionally, avoid biting your nails or using your teeth to open beer bottles since doing so might fracture your dental crowns. Patients with bruxism should wear a night guard at night to prevent bruxism that wears down the dental crowns. Lastly, report any discomfort or issues with your crown to the dentist the moment you notice them.
A dental crown might be necessary if you have severely fractured your tooth or teeth. The crown will restore the structure and functionality of the fractured tooth. You might also need a dental crown if you suffer from severe tooth decay that damages the teeth extensively. The dentist will remove the decayed portions of your teeth and use a dental crown to restore its structure.
Sometimes, dental crowns might be necessary after root canals. The root canal process might leave a void in the affected tooth, that a crown can fill to restore the tooth’s structure.
Most dentists recommend dental crowns for treating large fractures in the teeth. These are chips and fractures that cannot be repaired using dental bonding or fillings. Dental crowns are also great for restoring the tooth’s shape after a root canal, which involves removing the decayed parts of the teeth.
Dentists may also recommend dental crowns to address ugly cracks and stains in the teeth. Although, this is usually a side benefit of the restorative function of dental crowns. Otherwise, they’ll recommend dental bonding or teeth whitening.
Monday: 8am-5pm
Tuesday: 8am-5pm
Wednesday: 8am-5pm
Thursday: 8am-5pm
Friday (1x/mo): 8am-12pm
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