Teeth undergo a lot of stresses, wear, damage, and discoloration as a person ages. This is quite normal for any person and it doesn’t affect the teeth by much, but when they occur excessively, it would be a problem. Dental crowns are cap-like restorations that are used to cover a tooth completely. Dentists use them to treat teeth that are cracked, chipped, worn out, discolored, and weak due to lack of nutrition.

What Can Crowns Be Used For?

Dental crowns have a wide variety of uses and help to restore several oral defects. Some of them are as follows:

Worn out teeth: Bruxism or grinding of teeth during night time is one of the main causes of excessive wear of teeth. The teeth appear shorter than they should actually be, which can ruin the appearance of the smile. Such teeth can be increased in length using crowns.

Chipped and misshapen teeth: Getting hit in the mouth can damage the teeth to a large extent. Sometimes, a certain edge of the tooth would be lost due to chipping. In other cases, the teeth may erupt naturally out of shape. Such teeth can be brought back to their ideal shape with the help of crowns.

Broken teeth: Retaining the natural tissues of the mouth is one of the top priorities of a dentist. Even when a tooth is broken due to a bad fall or a sports injury, we would try our very best to restore it using a crown. If that isn’t possible, it will have to be extracted.

Weak teeth: Getting a root canal therapy done would naturally weaken the tooth as it gets rid of the blood vessels and the nerves. This denies the tooth its nourishment, which can cause it to fail if not restored soon. Hence, dentists recommend restoring such teeth with a crown after the therapy.

Why Should You Choose Crowns?

  • The visual similarity that a crown has with the natural teeth is just amazing. Since it is made from customizable tooth-colored ceramic material, its color and texture can be matched exactly with that of the natural teeth.
  • A crown does it’s very best at saving a weak tooth. When a tooth is about to crack or crumble due to excessive stresses and lack of nourishment, a crown can be bonded to it to prevent tooth failure.
  • It offers a high level of durability and strength. This way, its rate of wear is limited to a minimum despite regular usage.
  • A crown lasts for several years and would look as good as new, provided you take proper care of it.

Procedure

Initially, your condition will be carefully diagnosed by the dentist to determine the candidacy for the crown. Aspects such as wear, damage, spacing available, the strength of the tooth, the recession of gums, etc. will be taken into consideration. A layer of the tooth will be removed to make space for the crown. Next, x-rays, panoramic scans, and a highly accurate mold will be taken to determine the dimensions of the crown required. It will be sent to a laboratory for fabrication. A temporary crown may be used in its place until it is fabricated.

During the next appointment, the tooth will be prepared by cleaning and etching. Dental adhesives will be used for bonding the crown to the prepared tooth. In case any changes are required, they will be made prior to permanently bonding it. A curing light will be used to harden the adhesive. Finally, a bite test will be carried out.

Call Dentist in Aurora IL at (630) 897-1300 or schedule an online appointment to know more about dental crowns.