A dental crown fits over the remaining part of a tooth, helping to strengthen it and making it look like a whole, natural tooth once more.
There are a number of reasons why we may recommend them. Your tooth may be very decayed and not strong enough to be filled any more, the top part of the tooth may have been accidentally damaged, or you may need one following root canal treatment. Crowns are also sometimes needed to help support a dental bridge.
We will numb your tooth and the area around it so we can prepare your tooth, and will take an impression, or mould, of the area. We will also take a note of the natural shade of your teeth.
These will be used by skilled technicians at a dental laboratory to create a crown which fits and matches your other teeth perfectly.
While the crown is being made, you will be fitted with a temporary one. Once your new crown is ready – usually within two weeks – we will fit it and bond it firmly into place.
Bridges are a permanent and realistic looking way of filling a gap between teeth caused by one or more missing teeth.
A bridge is a false tooth which is held in place by the teeth next to it. It is usually made of a precious metal base such as gold, with tooth coloured porcelain bonded to any visible areas to make it look natural.
Most often, the two neighbouring teeth – one on each side – will need to have crowns fixed onto them. The two crowns are then joined together by placing the false tooth between them and cementing them in place. This is known as a fixed bridge.
Creating a fixed bridge is usually a good option if the teeth either side are strong enough to support the bridge, but are already crowned or have had large fillings.
Sometimes adhesive bridges can be constructed. These have a lot less impact on the neighbouring teeth because the latest bonding techniques are used to hold the false tooth in place