What is a Dental Crown?

Everyone longs for a bright smile. With time the teeth tend to lose their natural strength, shape, vitality, and functionality. Cavities, periodontal infections, or dental trauma might leave the teeth weak and chipped. Dental crowns are the best way to restore a worn-out tooth.

Dental Crown-What Is It?

Dental crowns are tooth-shaped dental caps that are placed on top of a weakened or damaged tooth to restore the functionality of natural teeth. Crowns find applications to restore, protect, and cover an impacted tooth that cannot be solved with dental fillings.

Crowns can be made from different materials including metals, alloys, porcelain, ceramics, or metal fused to ceramics. Dental crowns made from tooth-colored materials blend well with the teeth and have higher aesthetic value. The dentist in Spring, TX, would be the best person to decide on the material to be used for the crown. The following factors play a vital role in deciding on the material of the crown:

• The location and functionality of the teeth
• The amount of the teeth exposed while smiling or talking
• The shade of the surrounding teeth
• The state of the gum or infection

Why Is a Dental Crown Needed?

Cosmetic dentist in Spring performs a thorough oral examination to assess the state of the oral cavity and to detect underlying ailments. The dentist might take 3D scans and x-rays of the oral cavity. The common reasons for getting a dental crown are:

• To cover a large dental implant
• To replace a large dental filling
• To support or strengthen a weakened or impacted tooth
• To correct misaligned tooth
• To improve the smile and to level the shape, size, and color of your teeth
• To restore a broken or severely worn-out tooth
• To hold a dental bridge in place
• To cover a severely discolored tooth
• To cover the tooth that has been treated with a dental implant
• To protect the child’s teeth from cavities and decay
• To support a severely damaged tooth that cannot support dental filling in infants

Types of Dental Crown

Dental crowns can broadly be divided into temporary and permanent crowns. The temporary crowns as the name suggest stay in the mouth for short period. The dentist uses an adhesive that can be easily removed and is used for the time one needs to wait until the permanent crowns come.

Some crowns cover only a portion of your teeth and are known as onlay and inlay. These are indirect restorations and are made outside the oral cavity as a single piece and placed in the teeth. Inlays resemble dental fillings but the entire prostheses lie within the biting surface of the teeth. Onlays are more extensive and cover multiple cusps.

The permanent crowns can be made from different materials as:

Stainless Steel and Metals

Stainless steel crowns are used on permanent teeth as a temporary measure. But steel crowns find application as dental caps among children to protect their teeth from cavities and decay. When the milk teeth come out to make room for the permanent ones, the stainless-steel crown also erupts with the crown.

Metal crowns find application for the back teeth as they withstand more pressure and are hidden from the line of view. Mostly gold and platinum are used in metal alloys. Often an allow is used to make permanent crowns. Cobalt-chromium or nickel-chromium alloys are best-suited for crowns.

Porcelain or Ceramic Crowns

These crowns are best suited for the front teeth due to their resemblance to natural teeth. They are made from organic material and are biocompatible and toxic-free. But these crowns are not as strong as the metal ones and can chirp or break when subjected to pressure.

Porcelain Fused to Metal Crowns

As the name suggests, these crowns have a combination of metal and crowns. The part above the gum line has a porcelain part while the portion below the gum line is made from metals. These provide better aesthetic value than metal crowns and are more durable than ceramic crowns.

What Is the Cost of Dental Crowns?

Dental crowns in Spring Texas can cost from $800 to $1500 depending on the material of the crown. Gold crowns can be the costliest and you might need to pay $2500. You may book an appointment with The Smile Designer of Spring and avail of the free implant consultation. You need to visit the clinic to know more about discounts.