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Crowns Are The (Re)Building Blocks Of Smiles

What makes a great smile?
It starts with having teeth, preferably teeth that are complete and teeth that are there.
For better or worse, the average American adult has fewer than 25 teeth, according to the National Institutes of Health. Even assuming a person’s wisdom teeth have been removed, they would have 28 teeth remaining.
That means the average American adult is missing three teeth, according to the NIH data. That’s a lot of incomplete smiles.
And that doesn’t even count teeth that are chipped, broken, or damaged by tooth decay.
Fortunately, our team at Oregon Smile Care Center can help you restore your smile with the building blocks of restorative dentistry — dental crowns.
Our dentist has helped countless patients in and around Salem, OR. Today, we want to tell you a little more about the kinds of crowns we can provide.
 
Why You Might Want A Dental Crown
You may not remember when it happened, but you have a noticeable chip in one of your teeth. It’s more noticeable because the rest of your teeth are fine.
Or maybe you cracked a tooth when you bit down on something that was too hard for your teeth.
Then again, you may have developed a cavity and waited a little too long to get it repaired.
There’s no need to worry. We can create a dental crown that will restore the full function and shape of your tooth.
In preparation, we will remove the damaged parts of your tooth. What’s left will provide a strong support for your dental crown.
The toughest decision may be in deciding what kind of crown to get.
 
The Kinds Of Crowns
The materials used to make crowns have continued to get better and better. Today’s crowns are stronger and look more natural than ever before.
Here are the kinds of crowns you could receive at our Salem, OR, dentist office:
▪︎ All-Ceramic
All-ceramic crowns are crafted from a solid piece of material. These can be shaped and shaded to match the color and size of your remaining healthy teeth.
You should be aware that these crowns may wear down over time, but they remain a good fundamental restorative option.
▪︎ E.max
You can consider this to be an improvement over the basic all-ceramic crown.
This too is a solid piece of material, but it both more natural looking and stronger than the basic all-ceramic crowns.
This should also be seen as an improvement on porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns. This was popular for years, but it left the potential for a clear dividing line that could reveal where your crown ended and your real tooth began.
An e.max crown blends in with your natural teeth on both an individual basis and in the bigger picture of your smile.
▪︎ Porcelain
Porcelain crowns have remained common because they are dependable.
Porcelain has been used for several decades because it reflects light in a way that closely matches natural teeth and because it has proven to be a durable material.
▪︎ Zirconia
If strength and functionality are the most important quality you are seeking, then this may be the dental crown for you.
Zirconia crowns are a more recent development than porcelain. While zirconia does look like a tooth, its biggest draw may be its durability.
With a zirconia crown, you should get several years if not decades of dependable service as a tooth replacement.
 
Combined Forces
Each kind of crown we mentioned above can be used to repair individual teeth that have been damaged.
So … what if you are missing a tooth?
Dental crowns can help with this, too, but they need to join forces to do it.
One option is to fuse multiple crowns together to create a dental bridge. A traditional bridge is supported by two teeth that hold one or more crowns between the to fill in the space created by a missing tooth or lost teeth.
Another option, and one that you may prefer, only requires one dental crown and will not involve preparing otherwise healthy teeth to support a dental bridge.
With a dental implant, you have a way to replace the root of your missing tooth. This also serves as the stable support for a dental crown to give you a complete tooth replacement.
 
Working On Behalf Of Your Smile
Getting a dental crown may be done to restore what has been missing from your smile, but it also helps to prevent future problems from developing.
If you have questions about dental crowns or restorative dentistry, please call Oregon Smile Care Center at (503) 809-4784 or fill out our online contact form.

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