Dental Crowns – Procedure Overview | Indianapolis
Crowns are designed to cover the entire portion of your tooth above the gum line in order to strengthen and protect the remaining tooth structure and to improve its appearance. Following a dental emergency or routine examination, your dentist may recommend that you get a dental crown for any of the following reasons:
- A fractured tooth
- Extensive damage by decay
- A weakened tooth due to large filling
- Deep tooth stains that affect the aesthetics of your smile
- To strengthen and protect a tooth following root canal therapy
- To support replacement teeth with bridgework
- To replace missing teeth when anchored to dental implants
If you’re a good candidate for dental crowns, you will require at least two appointments to complete the treatment:
First Visit
Your dentist will start by administering a local anaesthetic that will numb you for the duration of the procedure. This is necessary to prevent you from feeling any pain when the dentist is preparing your tooth. The process of tooth preparation depends on your specific case, and may involve the removal of any decay and infection and filing down the tooth to maximize the retention of the crown and to ensure a good fit that doesn’t distort your smile.
After tooth preparation, a mold or impression of the tooth will be made and sent to the lab to fabricate your permanent custom crown. To protect the prepared tooth, a temporary or transition crown will be placed on it. This crown is typically made from plastic material (acrylic), and is held in place using a temporary cementing medium to allow easy removal at your next visit.
Second Visit
On your second scheduled visit, which should be in two to three weeks from the first visit, the dentist will remove the temporary crown and clean off the temporary cement from the prepared tooth. The permanent crown will then be fitted and adjusted for any bite variations. The dentist will check for accuracy and assess the aesthetics. If there are no issues, the crown can be cemented to your tooth.
Same-Day Crowns
It is possible to get your permanent crown prepared and installed on the same day. The dentist uses a wand scanner to capture pictures of the teeth, transfers the images into a computer, and uses CAD software (computer-aided design) to design a 3D model that can be used to fabricate a replacement ceramic crown in about 15 minutes.
Caring for Your Dental Crowns
Dental crowns should last long time with proper care, which includes regular brushing and flossing, not using your teeth as tools to crush ice or bite nails, and regular professional cleaning to keep your mouth healthy.
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