Even though dental fillings are designed to repair teeth that suffered small areas of tooth decay and last a long time, they don’t last indefinitely. Over time, the bacteria in your mouth can affect the area where the filling meets the tooth enamel, which allows new tooth decay to develop on the tooth. One telltale sign of tooth decay is a slightly grayed appearance in the tooth enamel. In some cases, though, there may be no visible signs until the dental filling is deeply affected.
If the dental filling is lost, our dentist may recommend that we repair the problem with a custom-made dental crown.
Dental crowns replace the full tooth enamel and can be made from many different materials, including gold and composite resin. Our dentists will recommend dental crown material based on the primary function of the tooth and how visible it is in your smile.
To place a dental crown, we will first remove the tooth enamel to form a post-like structure called an abutment that contains the internal parts of the tooth. Then, we will create an impression of the abutment area and surrounding teeth in your bite before covering the abutment with a temporary dental crown to protect it. We send the impression to the dental lab, where your permanent dental crown will be made by skilled technicians.
After the dental lab technicians have created your crown and sent it to our office, our team will contact you for a brief follow-up appointment, where we remove your temporary crown and cement the permanent crown on your smile.
If you suspect that a dental filling has gone bad or you have lost a dental filling, call 480-558-7500 as soon as possible to receive treatment at Dentists 'R Us. Dr. Ali Nia and Dr. Amanda Wruble look forward to helping you maintain your healthy smile!