Crowns

Crowns are the most common restoration used for teeth that are significantly broken down by decay or trauma. A crown is a type of dental restoration which completely caps or encircles a tooth or dental implant and is typically bonded to the tooth using dental cement. There are several benefits with crowns. They are very strong and many of the crowns are very aesthetic and look very similar to a natural tooth. Crowns help strengthen the tooth. Disadvantages with crowns are that teeth with crowns sometimes will later on require root canal therapy. Just like teeth with fillings, teeth with crowns can still decay and when decay occurs around a crown, the tooth will often need a root canal. Another risk with crowns is that pieces of the crown may infrequently break off and sometimes the crown will need to be replaced.

There are 4 types of crowns available, porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns, all-ceramic crowns, gold alloy crowns and resin crowns. Porcelain-fused-to-metal crownsAll-ceramic crowns can range from moderately strong to as strong as a porcelain-fused-to metal crowns. Most of the all-ceramic crowns have the best aesthetics in dentistry. These crowns do not have any metal in them. Some patients, especially women, have metal allergies and these crowns are often recommended. Gold alloy crowns have been used in dentistry for over 100 years. Gold crowns are still the longest lasting crowns around. However, they are gold colored which makes them not very aesthetic. Resin crowns are the least used crowns in dentistry. They are aesthetic and they won’t wear the opposing teeth as porcelain crowns can, but they are not as long lasting as the other crowns.  These crowns become slightly rough over time and the opposing teeth wear them a little more than the natural teeth wear themselves. In choosing a crown, we look more at the characteristics of the crown than the cost, since crowns are closely similar in cost. are the most commonly used crown today. There is metal on the inside of the crown and the beautiful ceramic porcelain is baked on the outside. These crowns are every strong.