Good Teeth: They Don't Have to Be in Your Genes

When a dentist suggests placing a crown on a tooth you have in your mouth, there is likely a good reason he or she is recommending this. Dental crowns are not just used simply because your dentist likes them, but instead they have many different purposes, uses, and benefits. If you need a dental crown, it is likely for one of the following uses, and you should understand that following through with getting a crown will yield a number of great benefits.

The uses of crowns

A dental crown is a type of artificial tooth product that might be made of porcelain, composite resin, or metal, and it is uniquely created to fit over an existing tooth. To place a crown on a tooth, a dentist must remove a portion of the tooth's structure to allow the crown to fit over the existing tooth. Once there, the crown is permanently attached to the tooth.

Dentists use crowns on teeth to fix many issues. For example, a crown is ideal to fix a tooth that has a really large cavity in it or that has multiple cavities in the same tooth. A crown also works well to fix a tooth that must undergo a root canal procedure, primarily because to do a root canal, a dentist must remove a good portion of the tooth to access the roots and canals of the tooth. Crowns are also used as a way to support dental bridges in a person's mouth, and they may be used for a variety of other reasons too.

The benefits of crowns

Choosing to get a crown over a tooth offers a lot of benefits, and the main benefit is that a crown can save an existing tooth. When a tooth does not have enough tooth structure to exist on its own, a crown gives the tooth a way to survive. Crowns strengthen teeth and improve the looks and functions of teeth, and these are the top benefits of dental crowns.

The alternatives to crowns

There are really no good alternatives to dental crowns, other than a filling. Fillings can sometimes fix the same types of issues that crowns are used for, but a filling will never offer as much strength to a tooth as a crown will.

If you have any questions about crowns or alternative options to them, schedule a visit with a cosmetic dentist like one at The Smile Architects to talk to him or her about these things.