Dental Crowns – Corpus Christi, TX
Bring Back Your Smile’s Luster and Function
Teeth can break down for a variety of reasons, but the most common cause by far is tooth decay. When cavities become too large for dental fillings to resolve, dental crowns in Corpus Christi work to restore your tooth as closely as possible to its original function and appearance. Most importantly, they can help you save the tooth and reduce your chances of needing an extraction. Dr. Rob Madry creates customized restorations designed to blend in with your smile exactly, so don’t wait to call to schedule an appointment if your teeth are in need of repair!
What is a Dental Crown?
Dental crowns are one of the most common restorations used in dentistry because of their versatility. While they are typically used to restore teeth damaged by significant decay, they are also used to create more complex restorations to replace teeth, such as dental bridges, dentures, and dental implants. In certain cases, they can be helpful if you’re concerned about the cosmetic appearance of your teeth, especially when other cosmetic solutions can’t meet your needs. If you have any of the following dental problems, dental crowns may be right for you:
- Chipped or cracked teeth
- Cavities too large for a dental filling
- Teeth that have become significantly misshapen (usually as a result of injury)
- Permanent stains that do not respond to whitening
- Teeth that have been treated recently and need a crown (i.e. root canal therapy)
The Dental Crown Process
Thanks to our in-house milling machine, our office can dramatically expedite the design and fabrication of your personalized dental crown! To receive your crown, we’ll start by examining your smile and confirm that this restoration is right for your needs. From there, we’ll administer a local anesthetic to the area around your tooth so we can gently remove a small amount of enamel. This will ensure the crown fits properly inside your mouth and does not move or loosen while in use.
After modifying your tooth, we will capture a digital impression. That means you won’t need to worry about biting into putty impression material just to create your restoration. We’ll use this impression to design and fabricate your crown entirely in-house, which takes about an hour. Once placed, we’ll make modifications as needed to keep your bite even.
The Benefits of Getting a Dental Crown
When teeth are damaged and aren’t restored, dental problems can easily worsen over time. By restoring your teeth now, you can expect both improved comfort and chewing ability without risk of the tooth breaking down further. Over enough time, teeth can become so damaged that they need to be extracted entirely, something our office wants to do everything possible to avoid.
Furthermore, since crowns have the ability to resolve multiple issues at a time and are color-matched to your neighboring teeth exactly, you can effectively protect the long-term function of your smile for many years to come (typically between 10 and 15 years) and keep it looking natural.
Dental Crowns FAQs
If you have a broken or decayed tooth, Dr. Madry may have recommended restoring it with a dental crown in Corpus Christi. As versatile, effective, and reliable as dental crowns are, we’re sure you have a few questions or concerns before you’re ready to move forward with the treatment. This is completely normal, and we’ll explain everything you need to know when you visit us for a consultation. In the meantime, you can read the answers to some of the questions about dental crowns that our team gets asked the most often.
What Happens If You Wait Too Long to Get a Dental Crown?
When your dentist in Corpus Christi suggests that you get a dental crown, chances are that it’s necessary to improve the condition of your tooth. At that point, the tooth has likely be subjected to damage or decay, and leaving it unprotected could spell disaster. The longer the tooth remains exposed to food debris, bacteria, and chewing forces, the more likely it is to suffer enough damage that it needs a root canal or even an extraction. By getting a dental crown right away, you can preserve your natural tooth while avoiding discomfort as well as the need for more extensive procedures. That’s why we can’t recommend enough that you schedule your crown procedure soon after we tell you that you need one.
Do Dental Crowns Get Cavities?
The crown itself technically won’t decay, but the tooth supporting it definitely can, especially if you don’t take good care of it. Without good oral hygiene, it’s possible for bacteria and plaque to build up along the gumline, where they can travel underneath the crown and damage the tooth. To minimize this risk, you’ll need to care for your crown. Luckily, dental crown maintenance is similar to that of natural teeth; you’ll need to brush and floss daily, visit Dr. Madry for routine checkups, and stick to a healthy diet.
How Long Do Dental Crowns Last?
Provided you take excellent care of your crown, you can probably expect it to last between 10 and 15 years. As mentioned above, proper oral hygiene will help prevent the tooth supporting the crown from decaying, which could cut the crown’s lifespan short. Another way to help your crown last as long as possible is to avoid harmful oral habits, such as smoking, biting your nails, chewing on pens or ice cubes, and using your teeth to open bottles or packaging. These habits could all too easily break your crown, or your other teeth, for that matter.
Do Dental Crowns Feel Natural?
After just a few days with your new crown, it should begin to feel just like any other tooth. Because Dr. Madry uses state-of-the-art digital impressions, your crown should have an incredibly precise fit that perfectly mimics the shape of the tooth it’s restoring. Additionally, our crowns are crafted from durable and lifelike materials. Therefore, it shouldn’t feel any different to your tongue, and chewing with your crown should feel just like chewing with a healthy, normal tooth.