Porcelain Crown Porcelain crowns, also called porcelain caps, provide coverage for a tooth that has had restorative dental work completed. This dental work is necessary if you have a tooth that is damaged, such as a chip or crack, or if it is seriously infected. When this happens to the back teeth, we recommend metal crowns because of their durability. However, the concern for front teeth is more cosmetic. Since these teeth do not help as much with chewing food, we use porcelain crowns because they look the best. Rolling Plains Dentistry can provide more information on the porcelain crown procedure when you call. Porcelain Crown PlacementBefore we can treat your tooth and place the porcelain crown, you will need to have a consultation at our office. On the day of treatment, we will use local anesthetic to keep you comfortable while we prepare your tooth. This involves drilling away any of the decayed tooth material and filing the tooth for crown placement. In order to make your crown, our dental lab needs us to collect a dental mold from you. This lets them create a perfect artificial tooth. This process does take some time, though. It may be a few weeks before you are able to receive your permanent crown. However, we will provide a temporary crown for you in the meantime in order to protect your tooth. Once we have your permanent crown delivered to our office, we will call you to schedule the placement. At that appointment, our dentist will take the temporary crown off your tooth. They will then attach the permanent crown in a similar way that the temporary crown was placed. However, the adhesive or dental cement used will be more permanent. Same Day Porcelain CrownsFor some patients, same-day porcelain crowns may be an option. These are beneficial in that you do not have to wait for several weeks to get your permanent crown. We make the permanent restoration on the same day that we treat and prepare your tooth. However, because your gums will still be swollen from the procedure, these will likely need to be adjusted after you heal completely. Instead of taking a dental impression and sending it to a lab, we use a computer-aided design (CAD) technology. This reproduces the 3D shape of your tooth digitally and allows a machine to mill your porcelain crown in our office. We then place this crown with a permanent adhesive or dental cement. Porcelain Crown CarePorcelain crowns can last for many years, but only if you take proper care of them. You need to avoid hard and sticky foods since they can break the crown. Despite the crown not being a natural tooth, you will also need to clean it daily as you do with your other teeth. Brush your teeth twice a day and floss them at least once daily. The crown will not become infected, but your gums still can, which is why oral hygiene is important. We will also monitor the condition of your crown at your routine visits. To learn more about porcelain crowns, call Rolling Plains Dentistry at 940-663-5353. |
