Are Crowns Only For Broken Teeth?
If you've ever chipped or seriously damaged one of your teeth, you've probably had a dentist suggest a crown. Crowns are an excellent option to cap and protect damaged teeth, restoring their appearance and functionality with a relatively quick and painless procedure. In many cases, a crown may help to reduce the discomfort associated with chipped or damaged teeth.
However, you might be surprised to learn that crowns aren't only for chipped teeth. Your dentist may also recommend a crown for relatively intact teeth under certain circumstances. If you're visiting a dentist for one of these three oral issues, your treatment plan may include one or more crowns.
1. Worn Teeth
Bruxism (or teeth grinding) is a relatively common problem with many serious consequences, including headaches, tooth damage, and severe, ongoing pain. If you're prone to teeth grinding, your dentist will first want to address the underlying cause and recommend therapies or treatments to stop your grinding from causing further damage.
Unfortunately, grinding your teeth for many years can cause substantial damage. Although your teeth may be intact, there may be enough wear to make them vulnerable to additional degradation, decay, or other problems. A crown can be a good solution to remove the damaged parts of the tooth while protecting it from further issues.
2. Bridge Support
A bridge is a common and relatively cost-effective option if you're missing one or more teeth. Bridges require support, usually from the adjacent teeth (known as the abutment teeth). You can think of a dental bridge as being similar in some ways to a road bridge. Like a road bridge, it requires solid anchors on both sides to remain in place.
Your dentist usually needs to reshape adjacent teeth to ensure they're strong enough to support the bridge. As a result, it's typical to install crowns on these teeth to maintain their appearance and to help match the appearance of the bridge teeth. While receiving crowns on otherwise healthy teeth can be a little disconcerting, they'll improve your smile and help make your teeth stronger.
3. Weakened Teeth
A broken tooth is more than just a cosmetic issue. When a tooth breaks, it provides an avenue for further damage, infection, and other serious or even life-threatening health issues. In other words, waiting for a weakened tooth to break can invite potentially severe issues. Dentists will often want to address weakened teeth before this situation occurs.
Assuming the tooth still has enough structure remaining, a crown is one option to protect it from further damage and prevent it from breaking. If the tooth is decaying, stained, or otherwise has issues, a crown will also help restore its appearance.
Contact a dentist for more information about porcelain dental crowns.