5 Decisions to Make Before You Get a Dental Crown
A crown is a essentially a fake tooth that can fit over an existing tooth or an implant. Considered to be a type of restorative dentistry as well as a type of cosmetic dentistry, crowns also improve the health of your mouth by maintaining your bite. If you're thinking about getting a crown, there are a few decisions you need to make first.
1. What Are You Going to Anchor the Crown to?
Crowns need to be anchored to something. If your existing tooth is cracked but still structurally sound, the dentist can remove the decay from that tooth and shave it down. Then, he or she can put the crown on top of it.
If your existing tooth is too decayed to save or if it's already missing, you may be a good candidate for an implant. With this setup, the dentist will put a metal rod into your jaw. Then, the crown will be attached to that.
2. What Material Do You Want?
You can get crowns in all sorts of materials. You can opt for metal crowns or even ones that have been coated in gold. If you prefer a more natural look, you may want to opt for a porcelain or ceramic crown.
3. Do You Want Extra Services to Make the Tooth Match?
If you opt for a porcelain or ceramic crown, you may want to look for concierge services as well. This is when dentists offer additional services to get the crown to match the rest of your teeth even better than it normally does. That may involve custom colouring or extra shaping.
4. Do You Prefer Same-Day Crowns?
In most cases, it takes at least two appointments for you to get the crown. Typically, during the first appointment, the dentist will take the mould for the crown. Then, he or she will put a temporary crown in your mouth and send the mould to the lab to be crafted. You get the real crown put in during the next appointment.
However, some dentists have equipment that allows them to make crowns right in their office. That means you can get same-day treatment.
5. Can You Maintain the Crown?
Crowns are impervious to cavities because they aren't real teeth, but you still need to take care of them. In particular, you need to be able to floss the area between the crown and the rest of your teeth. If that's not possible, you may want to think about alternatives.
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