A Real Scenario
Yesterday a patient came to my office concerned about a tooth that he had chipped. Upon inspection, we discovered that the tooth had an existing filling with a large amount of decay within the tooth. I explained that we needed to remove the decay and restore the tooth with a crown in order to avoid future breakdown and potential loss of the tooth.
A crown is a material made of porcelain or metal, or a combination of porcelain and metal. It completely covers the tooth.
Reasons for having a crown placed on your tooth include the following–
- Cosmetic: Sometimes teeth are stained and discolored dark enough that bleaching the teeth won’t work. Other times a tooth is genetically misshapen, or perhaps there are other cosmetic concerns with your teeth. In such cases a crown, or something similar to a crown, can be placed over the teeth to achieve ideal cosmetic results.
- Root canals: Following root canal therapy a tooth can be susceptible to breaking or becoming infected again by bacteria in the mouth. Placing a crown over a tooth that has had a root canal can reinforce structures of the teeth to prevent fractures as well as prevent leakage of bacteria into the canal to reinfect the tooth.
- Function & TMJ: Sometimes a patient’s bite and teeth alignment are such that the jaw joint (TMJ) can develop pain, popping, clicking, and limited openingof the mouth. Crown placement on teeth can sometimes be the ideal way to modify the teeth and establish a stable, comfortable bite (occlusion).
- Prevent fracture of teeth: As with root canals, large fillings in teeth can undermine surrounding tooth structure, leaving teeth susceptible to breaking. A crown covering large fillings can prevent teeth from breaking.
Same Day Crown
In the case I mentioned earlier, I offered to provide a “same day” crown, meaning we would initiate crown fabrication and deliver the final crown all within a couple of hours. He was very happy to get everything done that day and not have to come back later to have the crown cemented.
There is no additional cost for “same day” crown service, and the crowns are extremely strong.
Along with same day crowns, we can also provide porcelain fillings using the same technology. Instead of a silver or plastic filling, a porcelain filling (much stronger) is made and bonded into your tooth.
Patients have loved the results and have been especially happy when we can immediately work your surprise tooth fracture into our schedule and complete the entire porcelain crown or filling in the same day!
Tell your friends and give us a call today. We look forward to meeting and helping you!