Crowns and Bridges
Having a healthy set of teeth is not only important to alleviate your appearance, but it can also be a confidence-booster. But having
that healthy pair of teeth is not easy to maintain, to say the least. For whatever reason it may be, almost all of us have endured dental issues at least once in our lives. It could be due to tooth decay or an accident or some irregular shaping, we do get conscious about our teeth when they are far from ideal.
This is where the concept of dental crowns and bridges comes. From understanding what they are, when they should be used, how they can
benefit you, and how to take care of them; we are going to uncover everything related to them in this space. So, be sure to follow through.
What are Crowns and Bridges?
A crown, or a “cap,” fits over an existing tooth. It requires restoration due to deep decay, a fracture, or a crack. At least three units make up a bridge: two crowns (abutments) fused to a pontic, or fake tooth, that replaces a missing tooth.
This means that they are very much different from other removable devices such as dentures, which you can take out to clean daily. Dental crowns and bridges can only be removed with the help of a dentist.
Bridges
Cost-effective , Last for years.
Crowns
Comfortable ,Easy to clean. Look and feel like real teeth. Cost-effective.
Implants
Sturdy , Easy to clean , Look and feel like real teeth
Signs You Need Crown and Bridge Treatment
- A cracked tooth without symptoms
- The patient experiences sensitivity to bite pressure and temperature, particularly the cold
- Deep decay. Once the dentist removes the decay, there will not be enough tooth structure left to support a filling.
- The patient has had or needs root canal treatment
- The tooth has a large silver (amalgam) filling that is breaking down
Signs Patients Need a Bridge
- The patient is missing one or more teeth
- The patient has a removable partial denture but wants a more permanent solution
Benefits of Dental Crowns
- Reduces pain/sensitivity caused by a cracked tooth
- Prevents a crack from progressing and damaging the nerve of the tooth
- Improves the aesthetics of damaged teeth or those with larges silver fillings
- Improves occlusion (the bite) to prevent or ease pain from TMJ disorder
Benefits of a Fixed Bridge
- Promotes a balanced bite, reducing the risk of excess stress on adjacent teeth
- Allows patients to eat with ease
- Helps maintain the shape of the patient’s face
- Prevents adjacent teeth from shifting
How Do Dental Crowns and Bridges Work?
As we stated above, these prosthetic devices are bonded to your teeth by dental cement. Generally, the entire process begins with an experienced dentist taking a dental impression of your affected tooth/teeth. After this, the crown is fabricated and inserted into your mouth.
This method ensures that strong restorative material can be used for crowning. These materials require fabrication under intense heat (such as firing porcelain or casting metal) and the entire process requires legitimate time to get completed. Naturally, it can’t be done inside the mouth.
These days, dentists are using different computer technologies such as CAD/CAM dentistry for crown fabrication.
Bridges are recommended when there is more than one tooth to be taken care of. They cover up the empty space for the missing teeth. The teeth around the missing space are known as abutments and help serve as anchors for your dental bridge. Similar to crowns, you get to pick what kind of materials you get to choose for the bridges.
This brings us to our next topic of discussion wherein we discuss the types of materials used in dental crowns and bridges.
Crowns and Bridges vs. Dental Implants – What Is Best?
Each procedure restores missing teeth. Which option is the best depends on the needs of each individual patients and the subsequent recommendations of their dentist. Here are some of the positives of each.
Types of Materials Used for Dental Crowns and Bridges
Coming to the types of materials that are used for making crowns, it depends on your personal choice. Most people opt for ceramic and porcelain crowns since they match best with the colour of the natural teeth.
However, people do get fancy and can use acrylic and metal alloys for crowning. Some even choose to have their crown be fabricated with gold. Of course, that would cost you a fortune if you decide to do that.
Here is a list of the materials that are used for dental crowning:
- Ceramic – These provide the most natural-looking teeth and can include all-porcelain dental crowns as well. They are mostly used for frontal teeth.
- Stainless Steel – These are ideal for kids who have a filling in their primary tooth/teeth. They are also extremely cost-effective.
- Resin – It is more of a budget dental crown which means it is prone to wear and tear more than other types of dental crowing materials.
- Metal – Metal dental crowns are known for their durability. These are recommended for molars at the back of your mouth since they won’t be visible.
- Porcelain-fused-Metal – These are essentially metal dental crowns just with porcelain covering or coating. However, we must warn you that the porcelain often wears out after some time, after which you are left with just the metal crowns.