adminA dental crown is basically used to restore a weak, injured, broken or decayed tooth and it is nothing but a cap that comes in the shape of a tooth. A dental crown fits tightly over an entire tooth much like a cap or hat. In order to ensure the cap fits properly on the tooth your dentist may have to scrape a little amount of enamel coating. This shredding of enamel coating is done before bonding the new crown on a targeted tooth. Like many other dental appliances, these crowns are also crafted by skilled dental technicians inside dental labs. A crown for the tooth is made from a variety of materials like metal, porcelain resin, etc.
Who needs a dental crown?
A dental crown in London serves a number of purposes and so the appliance may be required in several circumstances. Typical situations when you need a fixing crown include the following –
- Strengthening a tooth that has become weakened because of several reasons including decay
- Supporting a cracked tooth as well as protecting it
- Restoring a tooth that is broken or badly worn down
- Hold a dental bridge in its place and provide support to it
- Cover up a dental implant drilled into the jawbone
- Cover up and protect a tooth that has already undergone root canal treatment or RCT
In addition to the factors mentioned above a dentist in London says dental crowns are also used to cover a tooth that is severely stained or discoloured.
Different types of dental crowns are available
The dental industry relies upon different types of dental crowns and you need to choose the right kind of crown. Your dentist can help you in this matter and can make your task of choosing the right kind of crown easier. Choosing the right kind of the dental appliance depends mostly on the unique needs of your oral health as well as your personal preferences.
Here is a brief introduction to some of the prominent varieties of crowns often used in the dental industry.
Metal crowns
Several metals are used to make dental crowns and these include gold, chromium, nickel and palladium. This variety of crowns lasts for years together and hardly chips or breaks. However, a small amount of the protective enamel coating of the tooth has to be removed to make room for this crown. A metal crown can easily withstand extreme levels of biting and chewing forces. This range of crowns is ideal for the molar teeth that remain at the back of the mouth and out of sight.
PFM crowns (or porcelain fused to metal)
The “porcelain fused to metal” crowns come with the natural look of porcelain combined with the outstanding durability of metal. It is possible for dentists to match the range of emergency dental crowns with the natural shade of your teeth so that your crowned tooth does not stand out from the rest. The porcelain coating in PFM crowns is known to chip off over time which is a major drawback for the variety of appliances. It leaves the underneath metal exposed. In the course of time, a PFM crown is also known to wear down the enamel coating of the opposite tooth (or the tooth that touches the crown replacement near me when your mouth is closed). PFM crowns can restore the teeth both at the front and the back of the mouth and can easily last almost as long as their metal counterparts.
Pressed ceramic crowns
A pressed ceramic crown comes with a hard inner core just like a PFM crown although the inner core is made of ceramic and not metal. This inner core is prepared by melting and pressing ceramic at a very high temperature in an oven. Skilled technicians are needed to prepare for this range of broken crown dental emergencies. In the next step, several layers of porcelain are added and just like every other porcelain crown this one too looks very similar to the translucent natural enamel coating of the teeth. However, this variety of dental crowns has the same disadvantages as the PFM crowns – the ceramic layers chip away in the course of time. According to some London dentists who stay open on Saturdays, PFM crowns are suitable to use for the teeth both at the front and the back of the mouth.
All ceramic or porcelain crowns
This range of crown repair resembles the appearance of the natural enamel coating of the tooth in the best possible way unlike that of any other variety. Lab technicians make ceramic crowns using varieties of materials but one of the popular items is zirconium dioxide. These zirconia crowns are capable of withstanding heavier forces compared to any other type of dental crowns and thus are highly long-lasting. These crowns also prove to be gentle on the opposite teeth and thus results in negligible wearing out of the enamel of the tooth.
Same-day dental crowns
These days, dentists also make use of CAD or CAM technology (CAD – computer-aided design, CAM – computer-aided manufacturing) to create dental crowns in their offices while patients wait. The range of software applications enables dentists to take digital impressions of a patient’s mouth and using those impressions they can custom design the crown for that particular patient. Once the design of your crown is ready it is sent to the milling machine present on site. The machine crafts out the perfect crown from a solid ceramic block in a few minutes, explains a dentist who works in the renowned Emergency Dentists London Pro in London. To get this range of dental crowns you need only a single visit to your dentist although everyone is not eligible for these same-day crowns. Your dentist can tell whether you are a suitable candidate for it.
All resin crowns
Dental crowns are less when made from resin compared to the other components. But on the flip side this variety of the appliance is highly fragile and gets broken easily especially when compared to the PFM variety. Resin is usually used in making temporary crowns and these crowns have an average life ranging from 3 to 5 years at the most.
Food that you should avoid with crowns
There are certain food items that you must avoid when you are on dental crowns irrespective of whether the crown is temporary or permanent. The items include hard nuts, kernel of popcorns, items that are highly sticky like taffy and caramels, etc. in addition to that you must also resist yourself from biting on ice cubes. Each of these items can damage as well as dislodge your crown.
Benefits offered by dental crowns
A dentist renowned for offering dental crowns at reasonable cost at Emergency Dentist London Pro identifies the advantages of crowns as follows –
- Protect the natural teeth from wear and tear
- Treat your broken, decayed and worn-out teeth
- Enhance your natural chewing capability
- Enhance your aesthetic appearance
