How Dental Crowns Protect Your Teeth

For your best smile, you want healthy, attractive teeth and gums. However, if one or more teeth are weak, misshapen or damaged, that dream is unrealistic. What's your solution? Why not consult Dr. James Bourne at Eagle Dental in Homer, AK? This experienced dentist often uses all-porcelain crowns to protect and beautify less than perfect teeth, sparing them additional degradation or dental extraction.
 

Should you get a dental crown?

A crown, or cap as it is sometimes called, is a porcelain jacket that approximates the size and shape of your natural tooth. After some tooth shaping and enamel reduction, your dentist permanently cements the crown in place.
 

Your tooth will blend right in with the rest of your teeth, and you'll bite, chew and smile with complete confidence. News-Medical.Net reports that dental crowns last up to 15 years when you care for them properly.
 

Here's what you and your dentist will consider together in his Homer, AK, office:
 

  1. Is there enough viable tooth structure left to accept a tooth-shaped porcelain crown?
  2. Does your tooth require root canal therapy to quell infection?
  3. Do you wish to improve and protect the appearance, shape and strength of your tooth above the gum line?
     

A visual inspection of your tooth and an X-ray will confirm if you are a candidate for a crown.
 

Uses for a dental crown

Your dentist can use a dental cap to remake any number of oral health issues, including:
 

  • Tooth fracture
  • Deteriorating fillings and cracked tooth enamel
  • Dental abscess (a root canal treatment comes first)
  • Congenitally malformed teeth, such as peg-shaped lateral incisors
  • Dental implant restoration (today's best tooth-replacement after extraction)
  • Support of a dental bridge made of one or more pontic, or replacement, teeth
  • Filling narrow gaps between teeth
     

Caring for a crown

Once your tooth is crowned, you simply brush and floss each day to keep it clean and shining. While caps do not decay, their margins can develop gum disease with plaque build-up. So, your good oral hygiene habits are critical. Also, you should protect your restoration from fracture by avoiding hard foods, such as nuts, and by never using your teeth as a tool to open packages or bottles.
 

Finally, see Dr. Bourne at Eagle Dental twice a year for a professional cleaning and exam. He'll check on the condition of your crown and other existing restorations.
 

Protect your smile

A porcelain crown may be just what you need. Don't delay. Phone our Homer, AK, office for your crown consultation with Dr. James Bourne. Your dentist will explain the procedure so you make an informed decision. Call Eagle Dental at (907) 235-8574.

Eagle Dental

Homer, AK Dentist Eagle Dental

3732 Ben Walters Lane

Homer, AK 99669 US

(907) 235-8574