You don't have to live with damaged or decayed teeth. If you have a tooth that's severely decayed or damaged and can't be fixed with a filling, your dentist might recommend replacing it with a crown. In the past, the process of getting a crown took time and required multiple visits. Now, you can get dental crowns in a day.
If you're ready to make over your smile, learn more about the benefits of same day dental crowns.
Why Do You Need a New Crown?
You might need a crown for one of several reasons. If you're having root canal treatment, your dentist will most likely place a crown over top of the tooth after removing the damaged pulp from the tooth. The crown will match the rest of your teeth and look and feel like a natural tooth.
Dentists also use crowns on top of dental implants. If you have a tooth or teeth that are badly damaged or missing, implants are a permanent replacement option. The implants fuse to your jawbone and a crown attaches to the top, imitating your natural teeth.
Dental crowns can also replace teeth that are damaged by cavities or support a tooth that's weakened.
What Are Same Day Crowns?
Traditionally, if you wanted a crown, you'd have to visit the dentist at least twice. During the first visit, they would take an impression your tooth, and X-rays of the area around it. The dentist would then send the impression to a lab, which would make the crown. You'd leave the office with a temporary crown in your mouth.
The lab would make the crown, based on the impression, and send it to your dentist's office. Once it arrived, you'd return for a second visit. The dentist would remove the temporary crown, make sure the new, permanent crown fit your mouth and matched your tooth color, then cement it in your mouth.
Same day crowns get rid of that waiting process and the need for a temporary crown. The dentist makes the crown in the office, thanks to CEREC technology. Same day crowns are made of ceramic and look and feel like your natural tooth.
How Do Same Day Crowns Work?
You only need one dental visit to get a same day crown. After examining your mouth, your dentist takes a digital scan of your mouth using a wand attached to the CEREC machine. They then use CEREC software to create a 3-D model of the crown.
Once the 3-D model gets created, the software sends the design to a milling machine, which is also in your dentist's office. The machine creates the new crown, often in just a few minutes. You can think of it like 3-D printing for your mouth.
When the new crown is ready to go, your dentist removes it from the mill, polishes it and places it in your mouth.
Benefits of Same Day Crowns
Same day crowns make it easy to restore a damaged tooth and improve your smile. If you'd like to feel more confident about your teeth and oral health but have been putting off dental restoration, there are many reasons to choose same day crowns.
- Convenience: It can be tough to schedule time off from work for not one, but two dental appointments. It can also be a hassle to drive to and from the dentist's office multiple times. With same day crowns, your tooth is restored with just a single visit. Depending on your situation, your dentist might be able to replace a damaged tooth as soon as they notice it.
- Time-saving: You'll save a lot of time if you choose a same day crown over traditional options. You won't have to drive to the dentist's office twice or spend days or weeks waiting for your new tooth to arrive.
- More attractive: Same day crowns are made from ceramic, which does an excellent job imitating tooth enamel. Traditional crowns are often made of metal or porcelain fused to metal. The metal makes the crowns strong, but also can be visible in the mouth, creating a less natural look.
- Less mess: When making a traditional crown, a dentist typically takes an impression of the mouth using putty, which can be messy. With CEREC technology, the dentist scans the tooth digitally before creating the crown. There's no need for sticky putty or a big mess.
If you're ready to get a new, improved smile, the dental experts at Liberty Family Dentistry are here to help. We offer same day crowns and other dental restorations, using CEREC. Schedule an appointment to learn more today.