Crowns
Crowns
Dental crowns are tailored, tooth-shaped caps that fit over a severely damaged tooth. They serve to improve a single tooth’s appearance, function, and feel and can be composed of various materials. Serving Porterville, CA, and surrounding cities, Live Oak Dental Group uses crowns to protect teeth and prevent extraction.
Candidates for Crowns
Are you unsure if you qualify for a dental crown? If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, it may indicate that a crown may help you:
- Are your teeth so severely damaged or decayed that they cannot be fully restored with a dental filling?
- Do you have highly uneven, misshapen, or discolored teeth?
- Do you need a dental bridge or dental implant?
Crowns are appropriate for people of all ages, including children. Dental crowns can help prevent decay from spreading to adjacent teeth.
Our Treatment Process
Are you anxious about getting a dental crown? Don’t be. Our Porterville Dentists have decades of experience installing countless dental crowns. Typically, dentists install crowns in two visits over a few weeks.
Dental crown installation is considered a reasonably simple, popular procedure, and this is what to expect during the first visit:
- Before treatment, the dentist numbs the area with local anesthesia and may apply sedation dentistry upon request.
- Subsequently, the dentist gently prepares the tooth by reshaping and trimming the tooth’s surface (enamel) so that the crown will fit. During this time, he or she may also treat the tooth and place a temporary to protect the affected tooth.
- Next, the dentist takes impressions and shares them with lab technicians. Lab technicians craft dental crowns that perch perfectly on top of the tooth.
When your custom crown comes back from the lab, the dentist will call you in for a second appointment. During this appointment, the dentist cements the final crown to your tooth.
Types of Crowns That We Offer
You have many options when it comes to choosing the type of crown you want, and here are some of the materials Live Oak Dental Group offers:
- All-ceramic crowns are ideal for the front teeth because they look similar to natural teeth.
- Though noticeable due to their appearance, metal crowns are durable and can withstand chewing forces.
- Porcelain-Fused-to-Metal (PFM) is the best of both worlds. PFM combines the strength of metal with the elegant beauty of a ceramic crown.
- Zirconia boasts of being a strong yet natural-looking material that reflects light similarly to natural enamel.
CEREC Same-Day Crowns
As mentioned earlier, traditional crowns are typically installed in two visits. Rather than wait weeks for a new crown, CEREC Same-Day Crowns can be placed in a convenient single dental visit.
CEREC stands for Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics. CEREC crowns are made of a durable ceramic that is designed, manufactured, and installed using computer-assisted technology in the dentist’s office:
- Computer-aided design: Our dentists apply CAD to capture digital images of the tooth and supporting structures. After, we take these images to design a customized crown.
- Computer-aided manufacturing: Our dentists use CAM to create crowns for installation.
Ask yourself these questions before scheduling your next dental cleaning and exam:
- When was the last time you visited the dentist? If it’s been over six months since your last dental cleaning and exam, the time is now.
- Have you noticed any recent changes in your oral health? If your breath smells extremely bad, you can see tartar on or between your teeth, or you have noticed a receding gumline, a trip to the dentist may help.
Do you have oral sores (ulcers) that won’t resolve themselves on their own? Unfortunately, sores that don’t heal on their own within two weeks can signify oral cancer. Immediate treatment could save your life.
