A dental crown is a covering for an existing tooth. It can improve the way a decayed or broken tooth looks and make it stronger and longer lasting. Crowns are usually made from porcelain, ceramic, glass or metal.

Crown

What is it?

• A metal or ceramic shell that is placed over the entire tooth to fully cover the tooth.

What does it do?

• Changes the colour and shape of the tooth.
• Protects the tooth, which may have been weakened by large fillings or decay in the past.

How is it done?

• The tooth is prepared, removing decay and old fillings where needed.
• A thin layer of tooth may be removed from the top and all around the tooth to make space for the material.
• A mould (impression) of the tooth is taken and sent to a lab for the crown to be custom-made. A second appointment is usually needed to glue in the crown, so a temporary crown will be provided. Some clinics have lab equipment on site and may be able to finish it on the day.

What are the main risks?

• It can chip or break, and need replacing again.
• A layer of tooth needs to be removed to fit the crown. In some cases this can get close to the pulp (nerve and blood vessels inside the tooth) and the tooth may need further treatment, like a root canal treatment.
• It is irreversible – once a tooth is cut for a crown, it will always need a crown.

Technique combining controlled eruptive TOOTH MOVEMENT TECHNIQUES and incision of the supracrestal gingival attachment to allow for proper restoration of a destroyed or damaged crown of a tooth. Controlled eruption of the tooth is obtained using ORTHODONTIC APPLIANCES. During this eruptive phase, repeated incisions are made at the junctional epithelium of the sulcus and the supracrestal connective tissue to prevent coronal displacement of the gingiva and of the attachment apparatus.

Dental crowns can be used to cover a broken or decayed tooth when too much of the original tooth is missing, such as after root canal treatment. They are also used to protect a weak tooth from breaking, and to cover stained or badly shaped teeth or to hold a bridge or denture in place

The dentist will usually prepare the tooth by removing a layer of its outer surface. The crown will be the same thickness as the thickness of this removed layer.

To make a crown, the dentist takes a mould of the tooth and sends it away to a technician who will prepare the crown. It can often be matched to the colour of the other teeth, so it will blend in.

You might be given a temporary crown to get you through until the permanent crown is made.

When the permanent crown is ready, the dentist fits it in place using dental cement or adhesive.

Although your crown cannot decay, the edge of the tooth on which it sits can. You will need to brush your teeth with fluoride toothpaste and floss your teeth, as is usually recommended.

Crowns are a way of protecting teeth that are weak or have been broken. They also help improve the appearance of teeth that are irregularly shaped or stained. Crowns can last many years if they are cared for properly.

But sometimes they break or fall off. This might be because the cement does not hold, or it might be because the tooth under the crown has decayed.

There are alternatives to dental crowns. If you want to improve discolouration, then veneers — which are thin layers fixed onto the front surface of a tooth — might be an option. If your tooth is chipped, your dentist may also try to rebuild your tooth structure using filling material.