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Crowns, the Procedure

When the dentist says that you need one or more crowns, the procedure is the same no matter what the reason for the crown may be. You‚’ll need to make two appointments with your dentist: one so that the tooth can be prepared for the crown , and one for him to cement the permanent crown in place.

How the Tooth is Prepared

To place crowns, the procedure for preparing the tooth should start with x-rays. The tooth should be checked to make sure that the roots and the bone are strong and healthy. Depending on the health of the tooth and reason you need a crown, the dentist might need to perform a root canal .

This removes the pulp of the tooth and fills it with a replacement material so that it can‚’t become infected at a later time, requiring removal of the crown and a root canal then.

You‚’ll receive a shot of anesthetic to numb the tooth and the surrounding area and then the dentist will file the tooth down to make it much smaller so that a crown can be placed around it. If the tooth is already very small, such as when one tooth has had many cavities or is broken away, then he might actually have to make the tooth larger. When this is the case, the same material used for fillings and repairs can be used to make it large enough to support a crown.

Once he‚’s satisfied that it‚’s the right size and shape for accepting a crown, an impression of the tooth to receive the crown and the teeth above it will be made. The impression of the damaged tooth is necessary to ensure that a crown will fit well. The impression of the upper teeth is to make sure that the crown won‚’t be too large or shaped wrong for the way your teeth fit together when you bite.

Your dentist will make a temporary acrylic crown while you‚’re there to cement in place to protect the tooth while you wait a few weeks for the permanent crown to be made.

Mounting the Crown

Your next appointment will consist of removal of the temporary crown and a check to make sure the permanent crown will fit properly and not affect the way you bite. If it looks correct, then you‚’ll receive more local anesthetic so that you‚’re comfortable during the procedure, and the new permanent crown will be cemented onto the damaged tooth.

Once that‚’s finished, your crown will be much like your other teeth. You‚’ll be able to chew and speak as you did before with no problems. The tooth can still decay around the gum line , even though the crown covers the rest of the tooth, so it‚’s still important to brush the tooth thoroughly when you brush your teeth and floss well.

You should be able to use that tooth for years without worry, because 10 to 20 years is the life span of most crowns. The procedure for replacing a crown is the same as putting on a new one.