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Gold Crowns

Gold has been used in dental procedures for thousands of years, not only because of its beauty (the Egyptians loved the look of gold) but because it’s a durable material that’s well suited for use in dentistry.

When you need crowns , you have a choice between metal alloys including gold, resin , porcelain or porcelain over metal. There are many reasons you should consider gold crowns instead of crowns made from the other materials.

Why Gold Crowns are a Good Choice

Gold crowns require less of the tooth to be filed away to prepare it for the crown, like other metal crowns. Porcelain and resin crowns are thicker. They have to be, because they’re a less sturdy material than any of the metals, so more of the tooth has to be removed in order to prepare it for a crown.

But gold crowns can be thinner because of the sturdiness of the material. And gold crowns can last much longer than porcelain crowns . Porcelain ones will last from about 5 to 15 years. Gold crowns have been known to last 20 to 40 years, and sometimes longer.

Gold will also require fewer repairs over its lifetime, as it’s the least likely to chip, crack or break where porcelain crowns are more prone to chipping. So even though high quality gold crowns cost more than those made with other materials, they’ll cost less in repairs and replacements so that they’re very cost effective.

Gold also is less likely to cause an allergic reaction as other metals can. And it won’t grow darker with age or stain as other materials can.

Health Benefits of Gold Crowns

Aside from lasting longer and being more cost effective, gold crowns are healthy, too. Because the thinner gold crown can fit to the tooth better and give with it more than a porcelain crown, there’s less likelihood that bacteria can find its way in and underneath the crown. Sometimes this bacteria can get underneath a crown that doesn’t fit perfectly and cause tooth decay . With gold, the chances of this are much slimmer than with other materials.

It’s also a healthy choice for your other teeth. When you have a crown, the teeth above or below it that touch it when you bite or chew are now exposed to a foreign hard material unlike your natural tooth surface. This puts extra wear on those teeth. Porcelain is particularly hard on your opposing teeth, wearing against them with much more force than your natural teeth did.

Gold is much easier on them, and often wears on them no more than your natural teeth would. This is because gold is very smooth, where porcelain may look and feel smooth but is rough when looked at under a microscope, and that roughness eventually wears tooth enamel and can cause problems with the soft tissue around the crown.

While only a few people like the look of gold crowns on the front teeth, many people could benefit from using this mouth-friendly metal on molars that don’t show when they smile.