Crowns (CEREC®)
Spokane, WA
 Are you having a problem with your tooth? You’re not the only one. In fact, 40% of people in the US have at least one tooth that needed work to protect it - such as a dental crown. People who have dental crowns usually have them to protect a tooth from tooth decay or gum disease.
While dental crowns have been used for decades, they really haven’t changed in hundreds of years. The only thing that’s changed in all of those years is the material that the dental crown is made from. Dental crowns used to take weeks to make and deliver. However, a new procedure speeds up the dental crown’s process from weeks to one day. They are called CEREC® crowns. Let Smile More Spokane Family Dentistry take a minute to tell you a little more about the CEREC® crown process.
What Is A Crown and What Is It Used For?
Dental crowns are used as a cap for your tooth. We use crowns for lots of different reasons. Sometimes, we use crowns to protect an injured tooth. It is easy to injure a tooth, especially as you get older. You can break a tooth when you eat nuts or ice. We also use crowns to cover and protect a tooth that has been damaged due to tooth decay.
If a cavity grows too large, it becomes weak. We can try to fill the cavity, but if the tooth decay is too large, it will eventually become so weak and infected the tooth will fall out. We can use a crown after a root canal to protect it from infection and more damage. In the past, we used to make crowns from gold or silver, but today people want a more natural look. These days, we make porcelain crowns over a metal cap for extra strength and protection.
What Is A CEREC® Crown?
CEREC® is an acronym for Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics. Not so long ago, making crowns was difficult. We would cast a mold of the tooth we needed to fix and send it off to get a permanent crown made. You would have to wait a few weeks for your new crown to come in. If your tooth was hurting you, we would place a temporary crown over your tooth to protect it. Then, when your permanent crown came in, we would grind your tooth down a little, and cement your new crown on. Now, however, the CEREC® crown process uses a CAD machine to use photos of your teeth and turn it into models of your tooth. We are then able to turn your mold into a crown on the spot with porcelain and metal and fit it to your tooth in one sitting.
Advantages of the CEREC® Crown Process
The best part about the CEREC® crown process is that we can fix your tooth that day. We can fix your tooth, do a root canal if we need to and fit the crown on the same day. There’s an even bigger advantage for you and your wallet. Because we are doing your CEREC® crown the same day, it is less expensive than a traditional crown. Do you have questions about the CEREC® crown process? Give Smile More Spokane Family Dentistry a call at (509) 505-6303.
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