Crown Procedures

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WHAT IS A CROWN PROCEDURE?

A crown is a restoration that covers, or “caps”, a tooth to restore it to its normal shape and size, strengthening and improving the appearance of a tooth. Crowns are necessary when a tooth is generally broken down and fillings won’t solve the problem. Crowns are also used to restore a tooth when there isn’t enough of the tooth remaining to provide support for a large filling, attach a bridge, protect weak teeth from fracturing, restore fractured teeth or cover badly shaped or discoloured teeth.

THE CROWN PROCEDURE (usually done in 2 appointments)

Preparation: the tooth is reduced on all 4 sides plus the top in order to make room for the crown. An impression of the tooth is taken, a temporary crown is made. The temporary crown will stay on for 1-2 weeks until the final crown is seated. The crown will be made on a model in a LAB (this is the reason for the 2 appointments).

The seating: the temporary crown is removed and the final crown is fitted onto the tooth. This normally involves some adjustments, and then the crown is cemented onto the tooth.

HOW LONG DO CROWNS LAST?

Crown should last approximately five to eight years. However, with good oral hygiene and supervision, most crowns will last for a much longer period of time. Some damaging habits like grinding your teeth, chewing ice etc. may cause this period of time to decrease significantly.

CROWN FAILURE ISSUES

After a crown is placed, the tooth still needs to be flossed and brushed, because it is still possible to get cavities under a crown.

There are other issues that can arise after crown placement:

1. OCCLUSION: This is one of the more common concerns with new crowns. If your bite feels off, your dentist can probably just adjust the crown to feel better.

2. OPEN CONTACTS: if the crowned tooth does not contact the adjacent teeth, you will likely get food packed in the space. This should be addressed before the crown is cemented, but if not, the only way to fix this is to either redo the crown, or do a filling or modify the adjacent tooth.

3. FRACTURED PORCELAIN

4. DECAY: of you get recurrent decay under the crown, most likely the crown will need to be redone.

5. OPEN MARGINS: this means that there is a space between the crown and tooth, and is not a good situation. If you have open margins around any part of the crown, the crown should be redone, because leaving open margins leaves the tooth at a much higher risk for getting decay.

CROWN BENEFITS:

1. Make you look nicer (cosmetic).

2. To repair a tooth which is badly broken down.

3. To prevent a tooth from fracturing.

4. To restore a tooth which has broken.

5. To eliminate a space where food is being trapped.

6. To hold a false tooth in place as part of a bridge.

7. The tooth no longer can be filled.

POSSIBLE
COMPLICATIONS

1. Porcelain portion of crown may fracture.

2. Crown may come off and may need to be redone.

3. Tooth may abscess and require further treatment
(may not show up until later).

5. Future decay may require a filling or a new crown.

ALTERNATIVES

1. Extraction.

2. Temporary crown.

CONSEQUENCES OF NOT HAVING WORK DONE OR POSTPONING

1. Tooth will probably fracture.

2. Tooth may need to be extracted.

3. May need a root canal in addition
to the crown.

4. May need bridgework or a denture.

Crown Procedures

WHAT IS A CROWN PROCEDURE?

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