Understanding Crowns
There are a wide variety of reasons that you might need to get a dental crown. If your dentist has told you about them, you even might be a bit confused or worried. To help ease your mind, here is an explanation of what crowns are and how they work:
What are dental crowns?
At the most basic level, they are caps that are placed on top of your teeth. They come in a wide variety of materials and are custom-made for essentially every case. This means that your crown will be unique and built just for you.
How does the crown installation process work?
The actual procedure for fitting a crown is fairly standard. You will first need to have the tooth prepared for for crown. This may be as serious as a root canal or as simply as a cleaning. Your dentist will then take extensive measurements of your tooth, preparing data for the construction of your crown. However, you can't just walk around with half a tooth, since that's a great way to get an infection. Consequently, you will be given a temporary crown, which will protect your tooth but won't necessarily be comfortable.
What's the deal with temporary crowns?
Thankfully, you only need to wear these temporary crowns for a few weeks, while the final crown is being prepared. It's common for a temporary crown to not fit perfectly, so you don't necessarily need to talk to your dentist if that's the case. On the other hand, if your final crown doesn't fit perfectly, then you should talk to your dentist immediately. Your final crown should fit snugly and be almost undetectable in your day-to-day life. If that is not the case, then it might have been fitted incorrectly and could cause serious damage to your teeth.
What kinds of crowns are there?
You may also need to decide what kind of material you want for your crown. Metal, resin, and ceramic are all quite common, and each has their own strengths.
- Metal - These crowns are often made of gold or nickel, but aren't too expensive. They are quite durable and will last a long while, but their biggest drawback is their color. They are made of metal and look the part, which might bother some people.
- Resin - If you want the cheapest option that is still effective, then resin crowns are a good choice. They are easy to conceal, but won't last as long as other options.
- Ceramic - Finally, you have ceramic crowns, which are durable and easy to conceal, but pretty expensive. They can also stain if you drink coffee, wine, or soda too often, so you need to be carefully about consuming such things.
Look online at the sites of dental professionals for additional reading.
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