A dental crown – a small cap designed to cover and protect the teeth – has many uses. It can be used to hold a weakened tooth together (such as when, for example, there’s a large filling but not much natural tooth left). It can be used to prevent a cracked tooth from becoming infected or breaking further. It can restore the shape, size, and strength of a tooth where root canal therapy was performed. It can even be used as a part of a tooth replacement – for example, it can be part of a dental bridge, or it could top a dental implant.
Whatever the case, the goal of crown placement is to prevent existing oral health issues from becoming worse while allowing the tooth to still be used effectively for everyday tasks such as chewing and speaking clearly. Contact our office today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Pham to see if you could benefit from a dental crown.
Your dentist will begin by administering a local anesthetic that will last from one to four hours. Once the site is numb, the minimal amount of tooth structure is removed in order to allow the new crown to fit comfortably and look natural.
It normally takes two visits to get a dental implant. During the first one, Dr. Pham will need to remove a very small amount of enamel from your teeth. This is done in order to make room for a comfortable, natural-looking crown. Next, it’s time to take an impression of the altered tooth using a thin strip of retraction cord that lets the dental putty reach below the gum line. Once the impression has been sent to a dental lab, it’s likely to take a few weeks for your permanent crown to be made. To keep your tooth safe in the meantime, you’ll wear a temporary crown. Try to take care of the temporary restoration; if it comes loose, try reattaching it with a dab of petroleum jelly until you can come back to our office to have re-cemented.
Once we’ve received your permanent crown, we’ll call you back to the office. After the temporary crown is taken off, the tooth will be cleaned, and we’ll make any necessary adjustments to the permanent crown to ensure that it fits properly. Finally, we’ll attach the permanent crown to your tooth.