Crowns & Dental Bridges at Cuffley Village Dental Practice
A tooth crown is a tooth-shaped porcelain cap that is fitted over a damaged tooth. It is an effective way of concealing and repairing damaged and discoloured teeth. A dental bridge, much like it sounds, is used to bridge the gap between two teeth by inserting one or a set of false teeth and holding those in place. A bridge is usually composed of two tooth crowns on either side, attached to existing teeth, which act as anchors. In between these anchoring or abutment teeth we will insert the false tooth or teeth.
Why will I need a dental crown or bridge?
A dental crown is used to protect a weak tooth from further damage or to support a large filling where there isn’t much of the original tooth left. Crowns can also be a solution for a severely damaged or misshapen tooth. A dental bridge is a way of replacing missing teeth. This will restore your appearance and help with your ability to speak properly. A bridge will also help you to chew and will prevent your teeth existing teeth from drifting into the spaces left by the missing teeth.
Will a crown or dental bridge look different?
We carefully match the colour of your crown or bridge to make it appear natural. This means the black lines you often see around dental crowns or bridges are much less likely to occur.
Which kinds of materials are used for a crown or bridge?
A dental crown can be made from stainless steel, another metal (like gold) or alloy, resin, porcelain that is fused to metal, or it can be all ceramic. We will consult with you on your choice of material to ensure you are completely happy with the appearance and cost of the final result.
How is a dental crown inserted?
First we need to prepare your tooth for the crown. This involves examining the tooth, sometimes taking dental X-rays to see whether the surrounding tissue and bone are intact. We may need to perform a root canal treatment if any of the tooth’s pulp is infected or damaged.
The next step is to anesthetize the tooth and surrounding gum tissue. We will then file the tooth down to make some room for the crown. Impressions will be taken of the tooth above the crown to ensure the crown fits well with your existing teeth. We use those impressions to prepare a new permanent tooth. In the meantime, you’ll receive a temporary crown. At this stage you should avoid sticky and chewy foods to prevent damaging the temporary crown.
When you return for a second visit, we’ll replace the temporary crown with the permanent one.
Getting a dental bridge
When you visit Cuffley Village Dental Practice to get a dental bridge, we’ll use your first visit to prepare the abutment teeth and take impressions. The abutment teeth are the ones that will act as “pillars” on either side of the new tooth or teeth. We’ll remove a portion of the enamel from those teeth to prepare them for the crowns that will be placed over them. At that point we will also take an impression of your teeth to act as a model for the bridge. Finally, you will be given a temporary bridge to protect your exposed teeth in the meantime.
At the second visit, we’ll fit the new permanent bridge. You may need to come back for a third visit to make any final adjustments.