Are you ready for a Crown or Dental Bridge?
Dental crowns are commonly installed following a root canal, but are a great solution for many dental concerns.
A dental crown can be thought of as a cap for your tooth as shown in the diagram. It is recommended when your tooth significantly breaks down or following root canal treatment. Crowns can be constructed of different materials ranging from gold alloys to porcelain and ceramics. Your dentist will advice you which one is most suitable for your particular circumstance. Crowns usually require two appointments to finish. The first being the appointment in which the tooth is prepared, impression taken and a temporary restoration placed. The impression is then sent off to a dental lab where dental technicians produce your crown. The second appointment is when the crown is received back from the lab, the temporary restoration removed and the crown cemented onto the prepared tooth.
At Redland Bay Smiles, we only use Australian based dental labs ensuring quality and safe materials are used to construct your crown. We use a Trios 3Shape Intraoral scanner, which is the pinnacle of state-of-the-art dental technology. This allows us to rapidly scan your teeth and assemble a digital model from which we can construct your crown or bridge. There's no longer any need to gag on a mouthful of impression materials used to create an old-fashioned mould. At Redland Bay Smiles, we're all about advanced technology and patient comfort.
Is it painful to have a crown put on your tooth?
Crowns are used to address a variety of dental concerns, so depending on what the underlying issues are, there may be some pain involved. During the procedure to apply the crown itself, we’ll numb the area with a local anaesthetic. Following your procedure, you may be slightly sensitive around the area where the crown was applied, but generally any pain and discomfort should dissipate quite quickly.
How long is a crown supposed to last?
Crowns, properly cared for, can last up to 15 years. We have seen patients with crowns that have been in place for 25-30 years. We usually tell our patients that they can expect to get at least ten years out of their crown, but you will very likely get much longer. We take great care to ensure that our crowns are placed with the expectation of maximum life expectancy. Naturally, you will need to maintain your crown with an appointment every six months for routine dental hygiene checkups.
How much does a dental crown cost in Australia?
The cost of your crown can depend on the quality, time and care taken to make it. Many dental practices send their crowns to be made in cheap overseas labs. At Redland Bay Smiles, we use 100% Australian dental labs and ceramists who have decades of experience creating high quality dental crowns. The cost of your dental crown will also vary based on the material that you choose and the nature of the area surrounding the tooth. When you come in for a consultation, we’ll go through all your options and give you a clear expectation of cost.
What types of Crowns can I get?
There is a wide range of materials available to construct crowns. The right material for you will depend on your budget, personal preference and dental requirements. Listed below are just some of the materials that can be used to create a permanent dental crown.
- Stainless Steel Crowns
- Metal Crowns
- Porcelain Crowns
- Resin Crowns
- Ceramic Crowns
What is the difference between a Temporary Crown and a Permanent Crown?
A temporary crown is often placed while we wait for your permanent crown to come back from the lab. Temporary crowns are also made using a digital scan of your tooth, but are only used as a temporary solution to protect your tooth and provide some normal functionality. The permanent crown will be made of tougher, longer-lasting material.
How do you take care of a Dental Crown?
Once you have your permanent crown installed, care for it as you would any normal teeth. Brush at least twice a day and ensure you reach all nooks and crannies. Floss regularly and ensure you visit your dentist at least once every 6-12 months.
Are there any alternatives to a Dental crown?
Depending on your reasons for getting a crown, there may be alternatives. If you are simply looking to address discolouration, veneers can be a great solution. Further. If your issue is a chipped tooth, we may be able to simply rebuild it using the same material we use for fillings. If you have been recommended a crown by another dentist but would like a second opinion, we’ll happily take a look and give you our thoughts.
How is a Dental Crown applied?
A dental crown procedure begins with preparation of the area in question. We’ll remove a layer from the tooth’s surface. The thickness of the enamel removed will correspond very closely with the thickness of the crown that is places over the tooth afterwards.
A dental crown is based on a digital scan of your tooth. Temporary crowns are often made in-house, but sometimes we may need to send a digital scan of your tooth away for a permanent crown to be made elsewhere. A lot of effort goes into the crown to ensure it is coloured very similarly to your existing teeth and will blend in perfectly.
When we’ve prepared the area and stripped away the outside surface of your existing tooth, the crown is placed over the top and secured with adhesive. From there, we may ask you to check back in to ensure your crown is secure, but other than that, you’re all set!
Dental Bridges
A dental bridge is another fixed option to replace a missing tooth. Bridges generally only replace one missing tooth.
How do Bridges work?
We begin the process by taking a digital scan of the area that requires the bridge and surrounding teeth. This scan is sent to a dental laboratory. The lab then pours the impression up in stone and prepares a precisely fitting bridge unit with a connector tooth that replaces your missing tooth attached to the two prepared or adjacent teeth. This bridge unit is then sent back to us to be inserted and cemented. We only use Australian-based dental labs ensuring quality and safe materials are used to construct your bridge.
Is a Dental Bridge right for you?
At Redland Bay Smiles, we are committed to offer patients the latest technology and advancements in dentistry. It is for this reason that we may advise against a dental bridge in favour of a dental implant. This is because an implant does not need the support of adjacent teeth and is therefore more conservative. However, each case is different and our Dentists will provide all the relevant treatment options to allow patients to choose which one best suits their circumstance.
Book a Dental Crown or Dental Bridge Appointment
Before you go ahead with such a significant decision, it’s important to understand your options. Come in for a consultation with us and we’ll happily walk you through the different types of crowns and bridges and what we believe is the best solution for your particular situation.
Crowns are the perfect solution for a wide range of dental concerns. Get in touch for a consultation today.
Call us on 07 3829 2434
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30/32 Cypress St, Redland Bay, Queensland 4165
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