Dental Crowns and Bridges, Laguna Beach
A crown is a tooth shaped “cap” that is placed over a tooth to restore its shape and function. Crowns that are joined together to replace missing teeth are called bridges.
The procedure involves removing approximately a millimeter of tooth structure from the tooth and taking an impression of the remaining tooth structure. A temporary crown is then placed on the tooth and the impression is sent to the laboratory to fabricate the crown/bridge.
Crowns and bridges can be fabricated from a variety of materials involving all metal, all porcelain, or a combination of both. The metal used can vary from non-precious metals to ultra-high precious metals, depending on the gold content. The higher the gold content, the more bio-compatible the metal is with the adjacent tissue. Metals that contain nickel or copper can actually inhibit hemoglobin, the oxygenating portion of the blood, from reaching the gum tissue. As a result, the tissue next to the crowns develop cyanosis as noted by a dark scalloping next to the crowns.
Dr. Boling only uses metal that contain a minimum of 90% gold for all porcelain fused to gold (PFG) crowns and bridges. Because less opaquing is required with metals with the higher gold content, the color of the porcelain is more brilliant.
- Restore a broken or severely worn-down tooth
- Protect a weak tooth from breaking
- Restore a tooth that has had a root canal
- Restore a dental implant
- Replace a missing tooth
When a crown does not match exactly the color of adjacent teeth, Dr. Boling can custom stain the porcelain to exactly match the color of the adjacent teeth. During the “try-in stage” to determine the fit and color of the crown, stain can directly be added to the porcelain while in the mouth. The crown is then removed from the tooth and placed in a glazing oven which permanently bakes the color into the porcelain.
