Broken or decayed teeth don’t give anyone a reason to smile. You need revitalizing care that deals appropriately with your dental damage. Dr. Jennifer Reed is a dentist in Lincoln who offers quality custom-crafted dental crowns that can eliminate decay and provide the protection and restoration your smile needs. With all-ceramic options available, you can count on the team at Smile Specialties to deliver one-of-a-kind results that allow you to maintain your gorgeous appearance. Call us today if you would like to schedule an appointment.
What is a Dental Crown?
Crowns are the recommended treatment if you have severe dental decay that’s too deep to treat with a filling, inlay, or onlay. Also known as caps, dental crowns are used in cases of broken or misshaped teeth to improve appearance and protect them from further damage. If you’ve had a root canal to remove infection from inside a tooth, then a crown is the final step to preserve it. Otherwise, it would require extraction.
The Dental Crown Process
Receiving a dental crown usually requires two appointments with Dr. Reed. At the first visit, your tooth will be prepared. To do this, your Lincoln dentist removes any decay and then files down the tooth to make room for the crown. We don’t want your new crown to crowd other teeth or interfere with the opposing tooth when you bite down. Once we’ve reshaped it, we’ll take impressions that will be sent to a trusted dental lab that will deliver a quality finished product to your complete satisfaction.
In the weeks between the two appointments, we provide a temporary restoration, so you always have a complete smile. However, you will need to be careful while wearing the temporary, which is made of acrylic and is not as strong as porcelain. As much as possible, try to chew on the other side of your mouth, and don’t floss around the temporary crown.
When your permanent crown arrives, Dr. Reed will remove the temporary and cement the permanent dental crown into place.
The Benefits of Getting a Dental Crown
There are many great benefits that Dr. Reed will go over with you when preparing to receive a custom-made dental crown. Many patients assume it is just easier to have the tooth removed, but when you discover how beneficial it is to keep your natural tooth, you’ll appreciate your dentist’s determination to restore it.
Many of the most common advantages of dental crowns include:
- Protection Your Tooth Needs: A dental crown can shield the underlying tooth from future damage and/or reinfection. Its all-ceramic material creates a beautiful aesthetic but also serves as a barrier to keep bacteria out so that your tooth is not negatively impacted over time.
- Cost-Effective Approach to Long-Term Care: Dental crowns can be a cost-effective way to minimize your risk for more invasive treatment later on. Tooth extractions have their own price tag but often come with the recommendation to replace the tooth so that bone and additional tooth loss do not occur. By having a dental crown put in place, you get to keep your existing tooth and avoid the extra cost of having it removed and replaced.
- Long Lifespan: Dental crowns are known to last up to 15 years before needing to be replaced. This timeframe can vary depending on how well you take care of your restoration, but with regular maintenance at home and by your dentist, you can enjoy a crown that lasts.
