top
+
Home Dental Crowns & Bridges

Category: Dental Crowns & Bridges

30Dec

Maintaining good dental hygiene can go a long way in protecting your teeth. Yet, there are times you may need help, and that often means a dental crown. This restorative option is a remedy for damaged or broken teeth and can blend in with your natural teeth, so your smile isn’t affected.

While most dental crowns are durable, the materials they are made from can differ. Each material type has its pros and cons, and knowing these can aid you in choosing the one that is best for your needs.

Why Might I Need a Dental Crown?

Dental crowns can restore teeth’s functionality and health and protect them from future damage. A crown is essentially a tooth-shaped cap inserted over the top of what remains of your natural tooth and helps to improve the appearance and overall functionality.

A dental crown is a solution for a variety of dental issues, and you might need one for the following reasons.

  • To restore cracked or broken teeth
  • To protect weakened teeth, such as after undergoing a root canal
  • To support what is left of the natural tooth, often due to large fillings or excessive wear and tear
  • To cover dental implants or hold a dental bridge in place
  • As a cosmetic dentistry option to improve your smile

Because of the role dental crowns play, they require materials that are strong enough to handle a comparable amount of force similar to that of your natural teeth. While appearance is important, especially if they are being placed within the smile zone, so too are strength, durability, and potential longevity.

What is the Strongest Type of Dental Crown?

Today you have more choices when it comes to the material in which crowns are made. While all are beneficial and durable, some may be stronger than others and may be the better way to go for the long term. Much will depend on where the crown will be placed in your mouth and how you care for it over the long term.

Overall, as long as you continue to practice good oral hygiene, including regular cleanings and dental exams, your crown can last ten years or longer. Below are the strongest types of dental crowns.

Ceramic

Ceramic crowns are one of the strongest types available today. They stand up well to wear and tear and can last up to 15 years or more. Custom-made to fit your mouth and match surrounding teeth, crowns made of ceramic are a top choice for appearance and durability.

You will need to remain careful in how you use them, however, and avoid biting down on ice, nuts, and other hard items too often. Doing so can cause them to chip, crack, or break, much like your natural teeth.

A newer way to go and still get the same strength is with CEREC crowns, which can be created and inserted in your mouth usually within one visit. Don’t let the fast turnaround time fool you, however. These crowns are resilient, durable, and long lasting while blending in naturally with your surrounding teeth in both look and feel.

Porcelain Ceramic

For a natural look, porcelain ceramic crowns are hard to beat. They are often used in the smile zone of the mouth, blending in completely with your other teeth. These crowns are somewhat fragile and may chip or break if bite pressure is too intense. For this reason, dentists often recommend not putting them on molars as these teeth often take the brunt of regular daily chewing. Instead, this type of crown is usually recommended for the surfaces of your top front teeth.

Composite

Composite crowns are also natural looking and blend in with your other teeth. They are less likely than porcelain crowns to chip or break but are not highly durable for regular chewing. Normal everyday brushing can also wear away at the outer shell, causing them to lose its shiny, natural appearance. This option is often good for the bottom row of front teeth.

Metal

Crowns made of metal are one of the strongest types available. You can count on them to provide years of use with limited worry of chipping or breaking. Yet, the downside to these crowns is their appearance. If you need a crown for your molars, however, these may be a good option.

Porcelain-fused-to-Metal

Combining porcelain and metal amalgam materials, this crown type provides both strength and durability, as well as a natural look and feel. They will not easily chip or break with regular chewing. A downside to this type of crown is that the metal part that sits at the gum lines can show if your gums recede due to gum disease.

Which type of dental crown will you choose? When it comes to making dental decisions like this, the best way to start is by first discussing options with your dentist and learning the pros and cons for your particular situation.

Schedule an Appointment to Learn More About CEREC Dental Crowns Today

Maintaining your smile and the functionality of your teeth is easier than ever today with the help of dental crowns. With the technological advancement of 3D-aided CEREC crowns, you usually only need one appointment to replace damaged or unsightly teeth, and they are strong enough to last 15 years or longer. Contact Dr. Richard Barry and his team at Lifetime Dental Health today to learn more and schedule an appointment.

29Jan

Cavities in your teeth can be painful. A crooked tooth can make your smile less than perfect. And stained or discolored teeth can be embarrassing. Still, these dental situations are just annoyances compared to the loss of a tooth, or worse yet, several teeth. According to the American Dental Association, the average adult between 20 and 64 years of age has at least three decayed or missing teeth.

Dental bridgesMissing teeth can change how you speak, make it difficult to eat, allow other teeth to get out of place, and even lead to tooth decay and additional tooth loss. That’s why replacing missing teeth is one of the most important dental corrections you can make to keep your teeth — in fact, your whole body — healthy. And one of the best ways to replace missing teeth is with a dental bridge.

What is a Dental Bridge?

A common way to connect two things — ideas, cultures, musical genres — is described as “bridging the gap.” It’s an idiom with a meaning that seems crystal clear. And one that applies perfectly to a common means of replacing missing teeth: a dental bridge. A dental bridge is just that — a device that bridges the gap between two (or more) missing teeth, by inserting the same number of artificial teeth (called “pontic teeth”) into the gap and connecting them to natural teeth (called “abutment teeth”). Dental bridges have been used regularly since the early 1900s and were by far the preferred way to replace teeth for decades. Today, four basic styles of dental bridges are available and affordable.

  1. Traditional

    These are the most common type of dental bridge because, usually, if you lose a tooth or teeth you still have natural teeth on both sides of the gap. A traditional bridge uses these natural teeth to hold the “bridge” that replaces the missing teeth. The natural teeth are crowned, and the bridge is placed between them. It is then secured by cement to the crowns on the natural teeth. Most often made of porcelain fused to a metal base, these bridges are strong enough to withstand the force from chewing or biting, and therefore can be used to replace molars

  2. Cantilever

    This type of bridge is basically a specialized version of a traditional bridge that is used when only one side of the gap is next to a natural tooth. The bridge is attached to the single natural tooth in the same way as in a traditional bridge — cemented to a crown — but only on one end. Less stable than a bridge with two abutment teeth, these bridges are not sturdy enough to be used in the back of the mouth, where the force of chewing and biting could damage them

  3. Maryland

    Also called a resin-bonded bridge, this is an adaptation of a traditional bridge, and is made of porcelain fused to metal, porcelain alone, or plastic supported by metal. Often preferred for replacing teeth in the front of the mouth, these bridges do not require that your natural teeth be crowned. Instead, they receive their support from metal or porcelain “wings” that are cemented to the backs of the adjacent teeth. Because of this, a Maryland bridge is only as strong as the bonding cement it’s attached with and, like the cantilever bridge, is not recommended to replace molars.

  4. Implant-supported

    Considered the strongest, most stable bridge of the four types, an implant-supported bridge is just what the name implies: a bridge supported by implants installed in the jawbone. These bridges usually require a minimum of two surgeries, one to install the implants (each missing tooth is replaced with an individual implant) and one to place the bridge. In cases where an implant isn’t possible for a missing tooth, a pontic tooth is used instead and suspended between two implant-supported crowns. Due to the healing process after an implant, it can take several months for an implant-supported bridge procedure to be completed.

What Are The Benefits of a Dental Bridge?

Over and above simply filling an unsightly gap in your smile, there are a number of advantages to replacing missing teeth with a professional dental bridge. A bridge can keep the teeth surrounding the hole from shifting around, maintain your natural bite so you eat normally, and provide the same structure your lost teeth did to support your speech. It also makes it easier to manage a thorough and effective oral hygiene routine and leaves your mouth feeling as natural and as comfortable as it was before.

Dental bridges are usually rather small and lightweight, and ordinarily, getting used to a dental bridge is easy. They help you look like you did before tooth loss, by maintaining the natural shape of your face and, because of the availability of modern materials, they look the same in color and shape as your remaining natural teeth.

Caring for Dental Bridges

Of course, like your natural teeth, a dental bridge needs care and attention. It’s vital that all your natural teeth stay healthy and strong. The success of any dental bridge is dependent on what it’s attached to, be it implants, crowns, or natural teeth, so preventing problems, particularly in the abutment teeth, is critical.

Most dental bridges last at least five to seven years. But with good oral hygiene — flossing and brushing daily and getting regular professional dental cleanings and checkups — they can last ten years or longer. At Lifetime Dental Health, we can show you how to effectively care for your bridge and advise you on what foods are likely to cause problems.

Don’t go through life with missing teeth. It can compromise the teeth you still have, encouraging tooth decay, contributing to gum disease, and even causing the loss of more teeth. We can help! Whether you’ve lost a single tooth or several, contact us for a free consultation and learn how quickly you can enjoy a full set of teeth again.

up-arrow-1