A crown is a type of dental restoration used to fix teeth that have been broken, weakened by decay or have a very large filling. The crown fits over the remaining part of a prepared tooth, making it strong and giving it the shape of a natural tooth. It will also be tooth coloured, giving the restoration a more natural appearance so it fits in with the rest of your teeth.
A crown could be a good solution for you if you have some discoloured fillings and would like to improve their appearance. Crowns can be used to replace these to give you a more aesthetic smile. Also, if you have had root canal treatment you will need a crown to protect or cap the restored tooth, allowing you to eat and bite down on it as if it was a real tooth. Crowns are also used to anchor a bridge or denture firmly in place in the mouth.
To prepare the tooth for a Crown the dentist will remove a layer of the outer surface, leaving a strong inner core. The amount of the tooth removed will be the same as the thickness of the crown.
Once the tooth is shaped, the dental team will take an impression (mould) of the prepared tooth, one of the opposite jaw and possibly another to show the way you bite together.
The impressions will then be given to a dental technician, along with information about the shade to use and any other information they need.
At Andrew Scott Dental Care we have an intra-oral scanner which can be used instead of traditional impressions. The benefits of using this 3D technology is that the dentist can email the file direct to the laboratory making the process much quicker. The laboratory are also able to design the crown in 3D and email this to your dentist prior to milling the crown.