ABOUT DENTAL CROWNS

A crown is a very strong precision fit cover that is placed over a tooth to strengthen a worn, damaged or broken tooth and to protect it in the bite. They are commonly used for teeth which have been structurally weakened by a large cavity or root canal therapy. Crowns are also commonly used for cosmetic reasons including enhancing the size, colour, shape and position of teeth.

Placing a crown can be a way to preserve the tooth so that it is might be retained for life. The end result is that it looks exactly like a tooth, and is matched to your other teeth. It is made in the laboratory by a specialist ceramist, who spends weeks making sure that it is perfectly matched, so that it cannot be detected in the smile.   

Brittle root treated molar and top premolar teeth are crowned to prevent the teeth splitting with the forces of biting, and to give them the best chance of being kept for a long time to come.  

A crown can be placed over a tooth that is still alive (vital) or one that has been root treated (non-vital). Research indicates that for every tooth that is judged to be alive (vital) and crowned, 10% go on to require root canal therapy. This is because the tooth is compromised to begin with, often with a deep filling or crack through it already, which may have compromised the pulp of the tooth.The dentist will take an x-ray in order to determine if the root of the tooth is healthy, and examine the tooth closely once all the old filling is removed. On occasions, a tooth that is cracked or very heavily filled, may require root canal therapy prior to crowning to ensure that an abscess does not develop, however this depends on the exact presentation of the tooth.

PORCELAIN CROWNS

An all-ceramic crown is made of pressed ceramic which is preferred for its longer lasting and superior aesthetic qualities, appears as real as is possible, and allows for extra strength and durability.

The all ceramic crown is considered to be as good a match as is possible to replicate or improve on the way teeth appear, with pressed ceramic technology.  The transparent colour and lifelike shape ensures that it is very unlikely to be noticed amongst your own natural teeth. 

These porcelain crowns are metal free which means there is no grey line at  the gum line. They are strong, long lasting and extremely unlikely to crack or fracture.

FEES

The fee for a crown is $2300, except for a single front tooth, where the fee is $2500 (due to a higher laboratory fee, and complexity of matching a single tooth to natural tooth structure. The fee reflects the high quality ingots which are used in the laboratory and the time required for perfecting the crown. Crowns can easily be printed off a machine in 15 minutes with cheap ingots and they appear to be flat in colour, with no staining or glazing, and it is not easy to produce excellence if the laboratory is sub par. Furthermore there are much cheaper laboratories in Australia and overseas, but selecting a specialist master ceramist who invests in high quality ingots, products and equipment will allow for excellence in aesthetics, where precision and expertise are critical to excellence in dentistry.

TIMING FOR CROWNS

The preparation of the tooth takes 1 hour with the dentist, where imprints and 3D scan photos are taken and sent to the master ceramist.  A temporary crown is placed over the tooth and two weeks later the crown is ready for fitting in a 45 minute appointment.  

DURABILITY

Crowns have a 5 year manufacturer's warranty from the laboratory against fracture, however this is contingent on attending six monthly preventive care appointments, to ensure that the gum and bone support around the teeth is in optimal health, where early changes are detected and attended to. Failure to floss or brush correctly around a crowned tooth, or to attend to six monthly preventive dental care can be detrimental to the longevity of a crown. With good home care and monitoring with your dental professional, we hope to retain a crown for over 10 years, depending on the underlying condition of the tooth. A tooth in very poor initial condition may have a poorer long term prognosis.

Our crowns are made with specialist ceramists in Brisbane and Sydney, who uses the latest digital technology for precision and aesthetics. Our dentist, Dr Leila Haywood is experienced and skilled in shade selection and preparation designs to produce excellent aesthetics and function. Challenging clinical situations such as a very dark tooth, or requests for copying a celebrity smile can take longer periods of time to produce a final good result.