Is putting children's teeth in crowns necessary? Definitely yes. Yes, because—look at this one here—you can see the teeth development on the child here. You can see that all the teeth have an adult tooth underneath. So if they have a cavity or anything like this, the crown—it's like a cap—it's strong. It's a metal crown. It stands still. It's metal, and metal goes around and covers this until the tooth erupts, I mean, until that tooth comes out and the adult tooth comes in. So the answer is yes, it’s definitely needed. It’s for the purpose of protecting the tooth underneath, the adult tooth in the future. The crown is metal—it stays still—and the tooth is not going to move around. So definitely yes.
Do crowns look like normal teeth?
Crowns look like normal teeth? Yes. Like we talked about last time, you can see here, the crown, yes, you put it in and it looks like a normal tooth. You can see here, like we talked earlier, you have it here, you put it in, and it looks like that. So the answer is yes, because it’s a replacement of the outer layer. If it’s porcelain or ceramic, then yes, it looks like a normal tooth. In some ways, it even improves aesthetics—cosmetically, it’s even better.
Can you get cavities on crowned teeth?
Yes, you can. So imagine this is a crown—it's like a crown that covers any portion of the tooth. If you have dirty gums or you have a cavity here, then yes, of course, you can develop cavities. Not on the crown itself, but usually on any other portion of the tooth below the gum or under the crown. And then that cavity sometimes goes and develops more inside, and you can see it go inside, and then you can have a cavity.
How do you take care of my dental crown?
How should we take care of a dental crown? We should brush and floss every day. It’s very important. And every six months, get your dental exam and check-up so we can make sure there’s no inflammation, no bone loss, and if anything is going on, we need to catch it early so we can improve that. And today, we also have something like a water flosser—Waterpik—which is excellent in terms of keeping it clean.
How long can you expect a dental crown to last?
Oh wow—so now, today, let me tell you—the crown made of porcelain is very strong, or stronger than natural teeth. This crown typically lasts 10 to 20 years. I don't see the crown break often—it's a very small percentage, maybe 1 to 5%, or even less than 5%, maybe 1%. A lot of the time, it’s not the crown that breaks—it’s the tooth, either from a cavity or because it’s weak. Then it breaks. But the crown itself—the material, whether it's zirconia or porcelain—is very strong. Or if it's a metal crown, it's strong. It won't break.
Does insurance cover dental crowns?
Dental crowns—most insurances cover some portion of it. It depends on the condition. If the tooth is broken and it needs a crown, like it’s been damaged on the outside and it requires a crown for replacement of the tooth structure—this area has been damaged for whatever reason and it needs a crown to replace the whole area—then yes, a lot of the time insurance can cover some portion of it. Cosmetically, usually no. But it depends on your employer and the contract with your insurance. We don’t know that—we have to ask the insurance. It depends. It’s hard to tell. We don’t know. But most of the time, yes.
How can I schedule appointments for the dental crown?
How would you like to schedule a dental crown appointment? We recommend that you call the dental office to make an appointment for an exam. Then the doctor can check and explain to you why a crown is needed and the reason for it. Then you can proceed from there. I hope I answered most of the questions. I hope this helps. And if you have additional questions or are ready for treatment, please call us at (724) 308-9360. We are happy to help. Thank you so much.