Crowns and bridges are two things that can improve your smile and make your mouth feel more normal.
A dental crown is a tooth-shaped cap placed over a tooth in order to restore it to the shape and size you’re used to– before something caused your tooth to change its feel and appearance in your mouth. Crowns get cemented into place, fully encasing the entire visible portion of a tooth at and above the gum line. They’re strong, helping reinforce the power of teeth to do their jobs for chewing, talking, etc.
A dental bridge is used to span the space where a tooth is missing. Typically, a dental bridge involves two or more crowns for teeth on either side of the gap and a false tooth in between. Bridges get cemented to natural teeth or implants surrounding the empty middle space. Then the replacement tooth is attached to the neighboring crowns in order to properly bridge the gap.
You might need crowns or bridges if you have missing or misshapen teeth. It’s a smart idea to have them put into your mouth in order to avoid problems down the line which can include oral diseases if/when teeth are missing or misshapen and/or problems talking “like a normal person talks.” Crowley Family Dental does this sort of “restorative dentistry” in order to restore your teeth, smile and mouth to its optimal functioning level.
Why get dental crowns and dental bridges?
They strengthen weak teeth and reduce any further damage to decayed/weakened teeth.
Cosmetically, they help you look better, improving your smile and making you feel more confident in front of other people. Imagine having a misshapen tooth and being embarrassed to show it– for years… A crown can fix that. This is true for discolored teeth as well.
And, best of all, they help you chew your food better and speak better, too.
Dental crowns can be made from a variety of materials, including metal, metal alloy, porcelain, ceramic and resin. Oftentimes people choose the more durable metal crowns for back teeth that aren’t seen much by people, whereas they go with resin (which matches the color of your natural teeth closely) for teeth which get displayed to the general public.
Bridges help close the gap when you have a missing tooth. Ideally, you do not want a gap between teeth because it’ll cause your other teeth to shift. Much like you’d want to streamline race cars in a race, lined up perfectly so as not to hit one another awkwardly, you’d want to do the same for your teeth so there’s no bad shifting. If and when teeth shift, your chewing ability can be negatively affected and you’re opening yourself up to be more susceptible to things like gum diseases.
Crowley Family Dental can help create and install dental crowns and bridges within two visits. Your first visit involves making a mold of your teeth as they currently are, then preparation of the tooth or teeth for the crown to fit. A temporary crown will be installed for the time being while your crown is being specially designed just for your mouth. Then, the second visit involves the placement of permanent dental crowns or bridges. Thanks to technology and extra special care taken by the doctor and staff, pain is kept to a minimum.