Temporary Crowns: A Peek into the Process at Christensen Dental

 At Christensen Dental, your trusted Henderson dental team, we believe in not just creating beautiful smiles but also ensuring the longevity and functionality of your teeth. Today, we'll explain temporary crowns and shed light on the meticulous process our Henderson dental team uses when preparing teeth for crowns.

The Importance of Dental Crowns 

Dental crowns play a crucial role in preserving and enhancing the strength of damaged or weakened teeth. Teeth can be damaged and subsequently need a crown for a few reasons.  Dental crowns are needed mainly due to decay, fractures, or broken teeth that can be saved.  Crowns provide a protective covering that restores the tooth's shape, size, strength, and color. However, the process involves more than just placing the final crown; it begins with preparing the tooth and using a temporary crown to cover the prepared tooth until the final crown is placed.  The final crown is typically placed about two weeks after the tooth is prepared for the crown.

The Role of Temporary Crowns 

Temporary crowns, also known as provisional or interim crowns, serve as placeholders for the final crowns while they are being custom-made in a local Las Vegas dental laboratory. These temporaries are essential for several reasons:

Protection and Comfort: Temporary crowns shield the prepared tooth from potential damage, reducing sensitivity and discomfort during the waiting period before the permanent crown is ready. 

Aesthetic Continuity: Temporary crowns maintain the appearance of your smile, ensuring that you can confidently go about your daily activities without feeling self-conscious about the gap left by the prepared tooth.

Testing for Fit and Function: Temporary crowns allow our Henderson dental team to assess the fit and functionality of the proposed restoration. This ensures that any necessary adjustments can be made before the final crown is crafted.

Maintaining Margins and Space: Temporary crowns are placed to maintain the space created after the tooth was prepared.  Teeth shift and move throughout our life and even the slightest shift can cause the final crown to be ill-fitting, thus requiring adjustments.  In severe cases of tooth shifting, the final crown may not fit at all, and a new crown would need to be made.  The temporary crown also maintains the contour of the gum line.

The Process of Making Temporary Crowns at Christensen Dental 

At our Henderson dental office, the creation of temporary crowns is a carefully crafted process, combining precision and artistry to deliver optimal results.  Most often, our dental assistants fabricate the temporary crowns.  They use a synthetic material and an impression of the tooth to make a temporary crown, that they then take into the lab to adjust and shape.  The temporary is adjusted in finite detail to ensure that it fits over the prepared tooth properly, maintains the proper amount of space between the adjacent teeth, is shaped in a way that represents the look of the final crown, and is the proper shade.  Your temporary crown is custom made just for you and your smile, leaving you smiling with confidence until the final crown is placed.

Tooth Preparation: Before crafting the temporary crown, our Henderson dentists first prepare the tooth. This involves removing any decay or damaged portions and reshaping the tooth to ensure a secure fit for the crown.  Our dentists then scan the prepared tooth, the adjacent teeth, the gum tissue and the opposing teeth.  This scan is used by the lab to create your custom crown.  The process of creating the final crown takes about two weeks for a single crown, and three weeks for multiple crowns and bridges.

Temporary Crown Fabrication: Using a bite impression and a scan taken of the tooth before it is prepared, a temporary crown is meticulously crafted to match the size, shape, and color of your natural tooth. Our dental assistants ensure that the temporary crown provides a snug fit and comfortable bite.

Temporary Crown Placement: The fabricated temporary crown is then carefully placed over the prepared tooth, providing protection, and maintaining the aesthetics of your smile while the permanent crown is being created.

Final Crown Placement: Once the final crown is ready, our Henderson dental team removes the temporary crown and replaces it with the custom permanent crown. This final step ensures a seamless transition and a lasting, durable restoration.

At Christensen Dental, our commitment to excellence is evident in every step of the dental restoration process. From tooth preparation to the creation and placement of temporary crowns, our Henderson dental team strives to provide comprehensive care that prioritizes both functionality and aesthetics. Our family is your family’s dental team.