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Restore Your Damaged Teeth
Dental crowns are tooth-shaped dental prostheses made of porcelain. They are designed to cover up an entire tooth, protecting it all the way down to the gum line. Essentially, a crown is a hollow, false tooth that’s used to restore the shape, size, appearance, and function of a damaged tooth.
At WestSide Dental Studio, Dr. Dean uses CEREC technology to provide custom-fitted, long-lasting crowns in just a single appointment. If you think you have a damaged tooth, don’t wait. Contact us now for an appointment or stop by our office located at 620 Humboldt Street, Reno, NV 89509.
Dental crowns are usually recommended for very extensive cavities that can’t be treated with a filling. Along with root canal therapy, crowns are also commonly used to treat infected teeth.
Crowns are also an ideal option for covering up and restoring teeth that have been cracked or broken by dental trauma. They can restore the shape and appearance of the tooth, and if you get a crown immediately after your injury, you may be able to avoid future complications like a tooth infection.
More rarely, crowns are used for cosmetic purposes if other treatments like veneers or dental bonding are not suitable for restoring the appearance of a tooth. Talk to your Reno dentist about why crowns may be the right option for you.
At our office, Dr. Dean has invested in CEREC equipment to provide same-day crowns. CEREC uses special software and computer-assisted machinery to create custom-fitted dental crowns out of solid blocks of tooth-colored porcelain. The entire process is quick, so you can get a crown in a day at WestSide Dental Studio.
The convenience and speed of CEREC is the biggest benefit. Traditional crowns made at a lab require two appointments over a span of 2-3 weeks. CEREC lets you get a crown in just a single, 1-2 hour appointment.
This also means you don’t have to wear a temporary crown, which can be bulky and uncomfortable.
When designing your crown, CEREC also uses digital scanning tools instead of traditional putty-based molds, which increases patient comfort.
What to Expect:
The process of receiving CEREC crowns starts with a consultation at our office with Dr. Dean. He will examine your teeth to look for signs of damage and discuss your aesthetic and restorative goals with you. X-rays may be taken to rule out oral health problems like tooth decay or infection.
If you’re considered a good candidate, we can get started by filing down your tooth to create enough space for the crown to fit on top. Then, we will take digital scans of your teeth and with the aid of CAD/CAM technology, create a highly realistic model of your tooth.
Using a milling machine, a 3D tooth that fits your exact measurements is milled out of a block of ceramic. The software also color matches the shade of ceramic to your natural teeth. Once this is complete, we’ll check the fit of the crown before cementing it in place and polishing it.
CEREC crowns will last for up to 10 years with proper care, oral hygiene, and limiting sources of staining and wear and tear.
Their lifespan is comparable to lab-made crowns but since they are made of ceramic instead of metal materials, they are less durable than some of the sturdiest and strongest crown materials. This makes them less suitable for placement in the rear molars in the long term, because these teeth withstand a lot of chewing forces.
To prolong the lifespan of your CEREC crowns, you should establish a good oral hygiene routine. Regular brushing, flossing, and dental cleanings are essential to prevent tooth decay and gum disease.
Limit your consumption of staining foods and drinks like red wine, coffee, tea, curries, and berries. These can cause discoloration of your crowns over time. If you grind your teeth at night, a mouthguard is necessary to prevent your CEREC crowns from breaking.
This is also important to protect your natural teeth, which can become chipped or broken from the severe force of teeth grinding all night. Do not chew on your fingernails or use your teeth to open things. Try to avoid hard and sticky foods which can damage or dislodge your crowns.
The main difference between CEREC and lab-made crowns is the time they take to complete. The entire process of taking impressions, designing, and fabricating the crowns all occurs in-office and can be done in a single appointment for CEREC crowns. Traditional crowns require a much more prolonged process due to the fabrication of the crowns taking place in an outside dental lab.
With regular crowns, the dental office would prepare your tooth and take physical or digital impressions of the tooth, then send these to the dental lab which takes over the reins of designing and creating the crown.
Regular crowns can take a long time to produce – usually between 2-4 weeks until they’re ready for placement. You’ll also need to return for a second appointment to place your crown once we receive it.
Since the crown can’t be placed during the same appointment that your tooth is prepared, you also need to wear a temporary crown. The additional crown materials, appointments, and outside dental lab can all run up your costs.
CEREC crowns are much more convenient because they require a single appointment where you receive an immediate official crown and can return to your daily life sooner. If you’re interested in fast, immediate dental crowns that eliminate all the hassle of outside dental labs, then contact us at Westside Dental Studio today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Chelsea Dean.
For the most part, you can treat your new crown just like a natural tooth. So make sure you brush twice a day for two minutes using fluoride toothpaste, and floss once per day to protect your teeth.
You may want to avoid very sticky and gummy foods like taffy, gummy candy, toffee, and caramel. Over time, these foods can loosen the crown. They also tend to be very sugary, which is not good for your overall oral health.
To protect the health of your crown and your natural teeth, you’ll need to visit Dr. Dean at Westside Dental Studio every six months for a checkup and teeth cleaning.
There’s no time like the present to get started on your journey to your best smile yet. We can’t wait to meet you, so be sure to get in touch today with your local dentist in Reno!
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