Crowns, Bridges, Veneers & White Fillings
What is a Crown?
A crown, sometimes known as a cap, is a protective cover fitted over an existing structure of a broken tooth to restore its function and appearance. The most common crowns to be used are made of porcelain that has been bonded to a precious metal to give it maximum strength. Crowns that are made entirely of porcelain are often used on front teeth as they give a very natural look and do not show a dark line where the gum and crown meet.
Why would I have a crown fitted?
Crowns have both an aesthetic and functional use. They can be used to replace discoloured or broken teeth, teeth that have been heavily filled or root filled. They can also be used to realign protruding teeth.
What difference can I expect after treatment?
Whether you have had a crown fitted for aesthetic or functional purpose, you will leave our practice happy and confident with your improved teeth. A crown can change your teeth’s appearance in shape or colour to bring you the smile you desire.
How is treatment carried out?
Your treatment will be carried out under local anaesthetic, unless your tooth has been root filled. At the first appointment about 1mm of tooth is drilled away leaving an even core for the crown to fit on. Impressions are then taken of your upper and lower teeth. A temporary crown will then be fitted from a tooth coloured acrylic material. Shade colours are taken to match perfectly to your natural teeth. The impressions are then sent off to the laboratory where your crown will be made. At the second appointment 2 weeks later, the temporary crown is removed and your new crown is cemented in place.
Should I treat my teeth any differently after treatment?
Your new crown will look and function as well as any natural tooth. However cleaning and flossing around the crown is very important, you will be shown how to do this before leaving the surgery.
Case Study – New smile and strong teeth
This lady had a congenital staining and softening of her teeth (they came through this colour). She had put up with the problem for most of her adult life because she had been told that nothing could be done about it. The softness meant that the teeth had worn quite badly so she had the combined aesthetic problem of poor colour and shape plus the functional problem of badly worn teeth.
A nice aesthetic smile was achieved with the use of the latest etched porcelain veneer crowns. The lady was delighted and said that “it had changed her whole life”.
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What is a bridge?
A bridge is one option to replace a missing tooth, other options exist and your dentist will discuss the best one for you. There are two types of bridges: a conventional bridge is made of metal and porcelain and is a number of crowns joined together attached to existing teeth either side; or an adhesive bridge which can normally only be used on front teeth. This is a false porcelain tooth with a small metal wing each side that is bonded to the back of the teeth either side of the gap.
Why would I have a bridge?
A bridge is one of the options you have to replace lost teeth. There is also a removable denture or an implant. All three options will be explored and discussed with your dentist before you make your final decision.
The main reasons you should consider replacing a lost tooth are to stop your teeth drifting into the space of a removed tooth and altering the way your upper and lower teeth bite together, putting extra strain on all your other teeth and, of course, for appearance as gaps can be unsightly.
How is treatment carried out?
Any extracted tooth site needs to heal and settle before any preparation can be carried out. This is because when a tooth is extracted you get slight bone and gum shrinkage, if the bridge is fitted too soon you will get a gap above the false tooth. This usually takes about twelve weeks.
At the first appointment about 1mm of the tooth on either side is drilled away leaving an even core for the crown to fit on. Impressions are then taken of your upper and lower teeth. A temporary bridge will then be fitted from a tooth coloured acrylic material. Shade colours are taken to match perfectly to your natural teeth. The impressions are then sent off to the laboratory where your bridge will be made. At the second appointment 2 weeks later, the temporary bridge is removed and your new bridge is cemented in place.
Should I treat my teeth any differently after treatment?
Your new bridge will look and function as well as any natural teeth. However cleaning and flossing around the bridge is very important, you will need to use a special floss called Superfloss©™ to clean under the bridge or special cleaning brushes. You will be shown how to do this before leaving the surgery.
Gum recession has exposed the edges of this bridge but the dark lines are due to the metal substructure showing through
By replacing the bridge with an “all porcelain” bridge the dark margins are gone and the bridge has more translucency, so looks much more natural
With the lips at rest this is the normal view. The new bridge has character and vitality
What are Veneers?
A veneer is a very thin shell of porcelain that is custom made to fit the front surface of your tooth.
Why should I have veneers fitted?
Veneers are an ideal way of improving the appearance of the front teeth and can be used for: lightening tooth colour; closing small gaps, improving misplaced teeth or repairing chipped teeth.
What difference will I see after treatment?
Veneers can transform your smile with very little preparation to your own tooth.
How is treatment carried out?
At the first appointment about a very thin layer of enamel is removed from the front surface of the tooth allowing a roughened surface to bond to the veneer. Impressions are then taken of your upper and lower teeth. A temporary veneer will then be fitted from a tooth coloured acrylic material. Shade colours are taken to match perfectly to your natural teeth. The impressions are then sent off to the laboratory where your veneer will be made. At the second appointment 2 weeks later, the temporary veneer is removed and your new veneer is cemented in place.
Should I treat teeth any differently after treatment?
You can treat your veneers almost as you would a natural tooth. However cleaning and flossing around the veneers is very important, you will be shown how to do this before leaving the surgery. Veneers can chip if they are subject to impact.
What are White Fillings?
White fillings are a very popular alternative to amalgam fillings and can be used all around the mouth. White fillings are made from a composite material that is bonded to the tooth, so they rebuild some of the strength of the tooth that has been lost due to the cavity.
What difference can I expect to see after treatment?
In fact white fillings are not white, they come in a variety of shades to match tooth colour and the shades can be blended to create an almost invisible match to the tooth. Your tooth will be restored to its natural look with little evidence that you have a filling in your tooth.
How is treatment carried out?
Local anaesthetic may be given if required and then the cavity is then drilled and prepared. A rubber sheet called rubber dam is placed over the tooth. This isolates the tooth so moisture can not come into contact with the cavity whilst the filling is bonded into place. The cavity is then treated with an etchant and bonding material
The composite is the placed and set by a curing light. The composite is then shaped and smoothed to transform your tooth to its natural form.
Should I treat my teeth differently after treatment?
Occasionally you may experience slight sensitivity for a day or two after treatment, this depends on the size of the cavity. Your new filling should be treated as natural tooth.
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