Porcelain Crowns & Bridges

Porcelain Crowns or Bridges

When there is not enough tooth structure left for veneers or inlays or onlays, or the chewing demands in the mouth are too great for veneers, a stronger, more extensive restoration is needed. Typically the best alternative is porcelain crowns. Porcelain crowns are placed on a fully prepared tooth. They are the most life-like of full crown type restorations. The technique initially consists of preparing the teeth. Next, an impression is taken and then sent to the dental lab where the porcelain crown is fabricated. Finally, they are placed in the patient’s mouth and permanently cemented onto the teeth.

Porcelain Fused to Metal Crowns or Bridges

When biting pressure is too great for all-porcelain crowns or gaps from missing teeth must be filled in, metal alloy is placed under the porcelain for strength. This is the porcelain fused to metal crown technique. In these cases more tooth structure is removed to accommodate both metal and porcelain. Once an impression is taken, a metal coping is made on the prepared tooth. This is then covered with porcelain. Porcelain fused to metal crowns does not have the translucency of pure porcelain crowns. Therefore, aesthetics may be slightly compromised in some situations. However, a talented ceramist with experience in custom staining can usually overcome these limitations, thereby creating life like restorations. When teeth are loose due to periodontal bone loss, this technique is used. Here the crowns are splinted together by joining the metal substructure of the crowns so they are tied together like a small fence in the mouth.

Treatment Time

Usually two appointments of approximately one to four hours for up to four teeth. Expect to spend more time as additional teeth or more extensive treatment is included.

Patient Maintenance

Care in biting hard objects to avoid fracturing the crowns. Fluoride treatments once yearly along with the use of fluoride toothpaste and flossing every day.

Results of Treatment

Crowning can achieve the ultimate esthetic results in reshaping overly crowded teeth.

Average Range of Treatment Life Expectancy

Ten to twenty years. Life expectancy is directly proportional to problems with tissue, fracture, and the danger of decay.

Cost

Approximately $1200 to $1500.