A crown is a dental restoration that is made to protect damaged, decayed, broken, or discoloured teeth. The crown covers the entire tooth and strengthens the supporting tooth. A crown may be required if you have:
- A fractured or broken tooth
- An excessive amount of decay
- A tooth with an existing large filling with marginal breakdown of old filling material
- A tooth that has been previously treated with a root canal
- A tooth with an existing crown that has failed because of decay
- A desire to improve your smile
At Dentistry on Sinclair we work with two types of durable, long lasting dental crowns:
Porcelain-fused-to-metal – porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns can be colour matched to adjacent teeth. Next to all-ceramic crowns or all-porcelain crowns, porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns look most like natural teeth. They are durable and long lasting when properly cared for.
All-ceramic or all-porcelain– all-ceramic or all-porcelain crowns provide the best natural colour match and may be more suitable for those with metal allergies. They are durable and long lasting when properly cared for.
Prefabricated Post and Core
A heavily damaged tooth that has been previously treated with a root canal will require more support to hold a required crown. In this case a metal post is inserted into the root area. The post acts as a support for a bonded filling to build up the tooth structure and the required crown is cemented onto the built up tooth structure.
What to expect at your appointments
A dental crown usually requires only two appointments. At the first appointment, the tooth is prepared, impressions of the area are taken and a temporary crown is fabricated and placed until the permanent crown is ready. It will take approximately 2 weeks for the lab to complete the final crown and have it sent back to the office. At the second and final appointment, the temporary crown is removed and the permanent crown is fit, adjusted and cemented.
Video Resources
Esthetic Crown
Porcelain crown