If your teeth get damaged from decay, cavities, trauma, crowning your teeth can protect and strengthen your teeth and restore back the function and aesthetic. Dental crowns are also used to cover severely discolored teeth
THE PROCEDURE
Crowns are made of durable material and can be color matched to your natural teeth. The procedure includes two visits. In the first visit, we prepare damaged tooth, take impression (a copy) of the prepared tooth for the laboratory to fabricate the crown which takes about two weeks or ten working days. A temporary crown is seated in between the visits. In the second visit, we attach the custom made crown onto the prepared tooth using dental cement.
Top image: Tooth with large gross decay. Crown restoration will protect weaken tooth due to decay, root canal treatment, or other restorations.
Bottom image: Crown is cemented onto the prepared tooth using dental cement.
Two upper front teeth were badly decayed. Pulpal exposures were anticipated upon removal of decays. Root-canal treatments were recommended and performed. Since there were extensive lost of tooth structures, posts were placed inside the tooth canals for retention of restorative filling materials. Teeth were finally restored with crowns for esthetic and strength.
Cost: root-canal treatment for front tooth: $350-$450/tooth
Post/ filling for root-canal-treated tooth: $160-$260/tooth
Esthetic crown recommended for front tooth: $750-$800/unit
CARE FOR TEMPORARY CROWNS
Because temporary crowns are temporary fix until definitive crowns are ready, we suggest a few precautions:
Avoid sticky, chewy foods like chewing gum, caramel which have the potential of grabbing and pulling off the temporary crowns
Try to chew on the other side of the mouth
Avoid chewing hard foods such as nuts, raw vegetables which could break the crowns
Do not floss around the temporary crowns during the 2 weeks waiting for fabrication of the definitive crowns; however, if needed, slide flossing threads out to the sides rather than lifting out. Lifting the floss out, as you normally would, might pull off the temporary crowns.
DENTAL BRIDGE RESTORATION
If you lost a tooth and still have teeth on both sides of the missing tooth, we can replace the missing tooth with dental bridge. Bridges are crowns connecting together using teeth on either side to support a crown in the middle which replaces the missing tooth. Upon placing the bridge, the teeth are connected together. This is a very strong structure and can restore your bite and prevent the surrounding teeth from shifting or moving. In case there are 2 or more missing teeth, instead of making a long span of bridge, a dental implant can be utilized to support a shorter span of bridge.
The total cost of treatment may vary from one patient to another. Please make appointment with the dentists for treatment plan and explanation of cost.
In this image, a custom implant abutment was screw on a healed dental implant and ready to receive a 3 unit bridge restoration.
3 unit bridge was cemented on a dental implant abutment and a prepared natural tooth to restore the missing teeth.
Cost : $650-800/unit crown
MULTIPLE UNIT CROWN/BRIDGE RESTORATION
Multiple front teeth got discoloration from decays. Teeth were too long and protruding.
Old restoration were removed, teeth were prepared,
New porcelain crown/ bridge restorations were cemented on, .creating a fixed new aesthetic smile line.
