Choosing a Dental Crown that Fits Your Life

When a tooth becomes damaged from an accident or decay, and a standard filling isn’t enough to save it, a dental crown may be the best option.

Many people feel self conscious about cavities and the need for fillings, and they may feel even less inclined to get a dental crown.

While some dental crowns are still made of metal, they are not the only option.

Choosing a Dental Crown in Houston

There are several options available for dental crowns in Houston. Their availability at your Houston dentist can vary based on the material, but in most cases they’ll all be present.

Dental crowns can be made from metal, resin, ceramic, and porcelain.

●     Metal Crowns
Metal crowns are usually created from gold alloy, which has been a standard crown for several centuries. Other metals that may be used include nickel, palladium, and chromium.

The type of metal used usually depends on if the patient has an allergy to a certain metal as well as the metal’s availability.

Additionally, temporary crowns (which you would get while a permanent one is constructed) are fashioned from stainless steel.

●     Resin Crowns
Resin crowns are very low cost and cause the least amount of wear to nearby teeth. However, they are also the least durable. They may require replacing once every few years instead of once every decade or two.

●     Porcelain and Ceramic Crowns
All-porcelain and all-ceramic crowns are made from a singular material and can be color matched to your teeth. These look and feel the most natural, but are often the most costly. However, they do provide a decent durability and can last upwards of 10 years.

●     Porcelain-Metal Crowns
As a middle-of-the-road option, porcelain fused to metal crowns provide a good cost/durability/appearance balance, and can still be color matched to your teeth. These are often the most popular option for getting dental crowns in Houston.

Why Should I get a Dental Crown?

Dental crowns do more than restore the look of your teeth. They can also restore the function of them.

A damaged tooth that has been chipped, fractured, or decayed may be painful to bite, chew, or drink with. Even a simple probing with your own tongue can be enough to shoot a lance op pain through your mouth.

With a dental crown, your Houston dentist gives you the ability to restore your smile and ability to drink and eat like you did before the tooth became a problem.

Dental crowns restore the shape and appearance of a tooth along with much of its strength. Metal crowns provide greater durability, which is perfect for molars.

On the other hand, porcelain and ceramic crowns can look like real teeth, making them especially suited for the more visible front teeth.

How Are Dental Crowns Applied?

First, your Houston dentist in Tanglewood area will prepare the tooth receiving the crown by filing it down.

While the crown acts like a real crown in that it fits over your existing tooth, it won’t fit over the whole tooth.

By filing it down, the crown will be able to match the size and shape of your original tooth.

A mold is created to show the dental lab what area they have to work with and how to shape the dental crown.

Once the new crown is completed, you will return to your Houston dentist to have it installed. The dentist will make sure that it fits securely and snugly, and once it does, it is cemented into place.

Choosing the Best Dental Crowns in Houston

If you’ve got a cavity that is too large for a filling to take care of or if you’ve received head trauma that severely damaged a tooth, you may be considering a dental crown as an option to fix your tooth up.

Dental crowns serve many purposes, both practical and cosmetic. They can repair a damaged tooth to make it stronger, provide an anchor point for a dental bridge, or improve the appearance of teeth.

A lot of factors can go into choosing the right dental crown, so how do you choose?

Factors to Consider when Looking for the Best Dental Crown in Houston

What is the best dental crown in Houston? The answer depends on many things. Cause, severity, location, cost, and personal preference all play a role in what dental crown you ultimately get.

The main materials used in dental crown construction include:

●     Resin, which is a cheap, low damage material that prevents excess wear on the adjacent teeth.

●     Gold, a standard for crowns for centuries. Gold crowns rarely cause issues, but remain durable for years.

●     Silver amalgam crowns are also durable and can be used as a cheaper alternative to gold crowns.

●     Porcelain crowns look very natural and are perfect for front teeth.

Choosing one of these materials as the crown for your tooth may depend on several factors.

First and foremost is the material’s availability. Not every dentist will provide all of the materials as an option for crowns.

Next, for most people, is the cost. Some crowns are more expensive than others. Keep in mind, however, that cost isn’t necessarily a reflection of worth, which we’ll get to in a moment.

Another factor is location and reason for the crown.

The reason for the crown may be providing an anchor for a bridge, accommodating a large filling, or saving a tooth from severe damage.

The location of the tooth, whether toward the front or back and in the upper or lower array may affect the material used?

Teeth toward the back require the durability to withstand heavy bite forces while teeth toward the front are more visible.

Lastly is personal preference. Some people may not mind having a metal crown that is visible, but a lot do.

Crowns that look more natural are more expensive, but not as durable. This makes porcelain crowns more suited to front teeth which are visible but not subject to heavy bite forces.

Metal crowns are best for the molars which do most of the chewing. These teeth also aren’t as visible as the front teeth, so patients often don’t mind them being metal.

Cost / Worth Analysis

Does a higher price mean a better crown? Not necessarily.

All of the factors that go into choosing a crown affect the material’s worth.

A resin crown is not very durable, but it does reduce the damage to nearby teeth.

A metal crown is moderately expensive, but is very durable, albeit noticeable.

A porcelain crown is expensive and less durable than metal crowns, but looks natural.

Talk with your Galleria area dentist and discuss the pros and cons of each type of crown to determine which are the best dental crowns in Houston for you.