In many instances, there is simply insufficient tooth substance to allow the direct placement of fillings or veneers to disguise cracked and discoloured teeth. Crowning of such a tooth may be the only viable option to restore function and maintain good aesthetics.
Dental crowns after root canal treatment are common and the crown can hold together portions of a fractured tooth, support dental bridges to fill gaps created by missing teeth and provide longevity to heavily restored teeth. Some people refer to dental crowns as dental caps. Dental crowns are similar in shape to dental veneers except that crowns cover all the surfaces of a tooth whereas veneers only cover the visible outward-facing surface of the tooth.
What are Dental Crowns?
A crown is a custom-made, precision item that is cemented over your tooth or implant to completely cover it. Traditionally crowns have been described as metal or ceramic fused to metal. However, advancing technology has provided materials based on Zirconium. These materials are very strong and durable and thus eliminate the need for a metal substructure for your dental crown. Ceramic crowns are now the gold standard in providing the ultimate aesthetic result.
Why are Dental Crowns used?
Crowns are prescribed as a part of our procedures to restore teeth in a variety of cases:
- Dental crown after a root canal treatment
- Where there is a severe loss of tooth surface
- If your teeth have been heavily restored
- Where poor aesthetic appearance is an issue
- To replace existing dental crowns that have a poor appearance
- To protect heavily restored teeth from breaking
- To restore broken down teeth and prevent further breakage
Elegant Smile’s dental crowns address both aesthetic and functional needs.
Initial consultation, assessment and planning will occur with our dental crown dentist. All options appropriate to your case will be thoroughly discussed. Preoperative pictures, radiographs and tooth shade may be taken. In certain cases, particularly cosmetic cases, impressions may be taken to allow our ceramist to provide a diagnostic wax-up, this will allow you to actually see and approve the intended outcome of your tooth crown.
Enough tooth substance and appropriate “core” must be in place prior to the provision of dental crowns. Once this has been established, the process of crown preparation begins.
Crown Fabrication Process
During your second visit, the tooth to be crowned will be prepared. An impression will be taken of the tooth and sent to our ceramist, along with your custom prescription for your dental caps. A temporary crown will be constructed to provide you with an aesthetic, functional and protective provisional restoration. In the meantime, our ceramist will follow your custom prescription to handcraft your dental crown.
The preparation procedure is usually completed in a single visit of 60 minutes, however, this may be longer or involve multiple visits depending on the extent, complexity and number of crowns.
At your final visit, the provisional crown is carefully removed and your custom-made crown trial fitted. You will be shown the crown at this stage. Once you confirm that you are pleased with the appearance and fit, your dental crown dentist will cement the crown to your tooth.
We expect our dental crowns to last for over 15 years
It is generally accepted that between 1 in 5 and 1 in 8 teeth that have been crowned or have deep fillings in them go on to become non-vital and require a replacement dental crown after a root canal treatment at some stage; this can be many, many years after the initial crown.
For those patients that suffer from dental anxiety, we offer conscious IV sedation to help you feel more relaxed during treatment.
Types of Materials Used in our Dental Crown Treatments
Various types of dental crowns are offered at Elegant Smiles, and their cost depends on the material of choice, time taken, the complexity of work and laboratory used.
Gradia
This is a white, resin-based material which chemically bonds to tooth enamel, so less drilling is required in the dental crown procedure. However, it is not as strong as all-ceramic or metal crowns.
The GC Gradia family is a unique, light-cured composite system for indirect restorations such as crowns, bridges, inlays and veneers and all types of direct restorations, whether it’s in the anterior or the posterior region.
All-Porcelain Dental Crown
White and incredibly aesthetic, all-porcelain is often indistinguishable from natural teeth. Even stronger than Gradia, it is also capable of chemically bonding to the tooth, producing a very natural result.
IPS e.max® Dental Crown
Ivoclar Vivadent’s patented lithium disilicate material is truly a revolution for the dental industry. Never before has a material been able to combine high strength, high aesthetics and ease of use into one product, until now.
IPS e.max® is a lithium disilicate glass-ceramic that has optimized translucency, durability and strength for full anatomical restorations. Due to the use of new technologies and optimized processing parameters, IPS e.max® lithium disilicate has evolved beyond previously available lithium disilicate ceramics. Indeed, compared to other glass-ceramics, e.max® demonstrates a strength that is 2.5 to 3 times higher. IPS e.max® lithium disilicate restorations exhibit superior durability, featuring 360-400 MPa of flexural strength. When fabricated to full-contour, the monolithic structure is the most robust ceramic system tested to date. The opalescence, translucency and light diffusion properties of IPS e.max® lithium disilicate were all designed to replicate the natural tooth structure for beauty and undetectable restorations.
Zirconia Dental Caps
Zirconia is the strongest crown material on the market today. The Zirconia material typically used by most manufacturers is atetragonal polycrystalline zirconia, partially stabilized with yttrium oxide. Zirconia materials typically have strengths of over 900 MPa.
Porcelain Bonded to Metal
White porcelain is bonded to a metal substructure. The metal gives strength whilst the porcelain gives the white colour. This material is not as natural looking as e.max® and Gradia dental crowns. The metal substructure may be non – precious or precious metal depending on the patient’s choice. The precious metal is generally preferable as it is more biocompatible with the gums, leading to less inflammation and is less potential for corrosion. The weak point here is the bond between the porcelain and metal and over time the porcelain may break away from the metal. Also, as gums recede with age, a black line may be seen above the crown and this leads to an unsightly smile. This blackness is the metal in the crown. This does not occur with all-porcelain/ceramic crowns.
Gold
A metal dental crown which is very strong and durable. Gold has been a successful restoration material for many decades. It has the most similar wear characteristics to natural tooth enamel and therefore is very effective on back teeth, especially for people who grind their teeth. The nature of gold as a material also allows minimal tooth preparation as it can be formed in thicknesses of less than 1mm, thus preserving more tooth structure.
Non-Precious Metal Crowns
These are base metal crowns that contain less than 25% precious metal or none at all. They often contain large percentages of nikel, colbat or chromium.
These can be used when metal crowns are recommended and when the patient does not want to have a shiny metal as this material can be made matt.
High-Quality Care from our Dental Crown Dentist
When preparing a tooth for dental crowns, it is important to obtain an accurate impression so that the restoration fits perfectly to the tooth, giving the best aesthetics, durability and comfort. At Elegant Smiles, we use high-quality impression materials from leading manufacturers to obtain highly accurate impressions that replicate the tooth structure to a fraction of a millimetre. Use of such high-quality material means a high-quality crown, veneer or bridge can be made with a perfect fit.
In certain cases (full stable occlusion) our dental crown dentist may use a novel impression tray called a Triotray from a company called Triodent. This tray allows impressions of both upper and lower teeth to be taken at once as well as recording the bite at the same time. This reliable product allows a single impression to be used to construct the restoration instead of two separate impressions and therefore reduces the number of times the patient has to have an impression taken. It also avoids the need for a full upper arch impression which some patients find initiates an unpleasant gag reflex. The Triotray, being made of metal, is stronger and less flexible than plastic trays, hence improving the accuracy of the impression.
Dental Crowns Recall and Review
It may take a couple of days for you to become accustomed to your new crown. However, you will be invited to return a few weeks after your dental crowns fitting to review your oral health status, condition of your crown and feedback of the cosmetic result. It is important to employ a strict oral hygiene regime encompassing professional hygiene intervention, as a crowned tooth is not protected from decay or gum disease. You will be shown the most appropriate method to ensure optimal oral health. As with any treatment, regular recall and review is essential to ensure optimal status of your dental crown.
