Though your teeth are durable and experience wear and tear on a regular basis, sometimes too much pressure can create structural damage in the tooth that requires treatment from a dental professional. You can find effective and long-lasting restorative treatment with a dental crown, a ceramic cap that a dentist places over a vulnerable tooth.
The uses for this fixture can vary, so it can be helpful to learn a handful of ways that a crown can enhance your oral health. Dr. Thomas Prendergast, a dentist located in Fox Lake, IL, describes five ways that dental crowns can preserve and protect your smile.
5 Oral Health Benefits from Dental Crowns
Replace Weakened Tooth Enamel
The sensitive interior of your tooth is protected by an outer surface called enamel. Though enamel is durable, over time, it may wear down or erode due to consuming acidic substances or other factors beyond a patient’s control, like aging.
Once gone, the enamel will not regrow, but weakened enamel can leave patients with uncomfortable symptoms like tooth sensitivity. To alleviate this discomfort and protect the inner layers of the tooth, a dentist can replace thinned enamel by covering the vulnerable tooth with a dental crown.
Whiten Severely Stained Tooth
A dental crown is a restorative dental treatment, but it can be utilized to enhance the appearance of a patient’s smile as well if they have suffered from tooth discoloration. Deep stains can be difficult to remove, so covering the tooth with a crown can make the tooth appear brighter.
The crown is custom-made according to the size, shape, and color of the patient’s surrounding natural teeth. A dentist can factor in the patient’s aesthetic goals as well when constructing the crown so that they can achieve a beautiful final look.
Treat Advanced Tooth Decay
Dentists can treat a cavity, a form of tooth decay, by drilling the damaged portion of the tooth away and filling the resulting hole with composite resin, or a dental filling. However, if the decay has advanced and caused too much structural harm, the tooth may require more restorative treatment than a filling can provide. A dental crown can offer effective restructuring for the tooth after enduring severe decay.
Repair Tooth Breakage
Abnormally high amounts of pressure or impact trauma may cause teeth to crack, chip, or fracture. This can put your smile at risk of oral infections and other dental concerns. Though cosmetic dentistry can repair minor tooth breakage, more severe damage might need treatment using a dental crown to cover the vulnerable areas.
Protect Tooth After Dental Work
Dental crowns provide excellent restorative benefits on their own, but they can also play an important role in other dental work. For instance, a crown can shield a tooth after an infected pulp has been removed during root canal therapy. A crown may also serve as a prosthetic tooth attached to a dental implant.
Dental Crowns and More Available in Fox Lake, IL
Infinity Dental offers dental crowns and other restorative dental treatments to patients in Fox Lake, IL. Dr. Prendergast also specializes in general and cosmetic dentistry, including professional teeth whitening services. To schedule a consultation or appointment with our practice, contact our staff by phone at 847.447.6637 or reach our office online.