Dental Crowns: The Installation Process

Some people think that installing an oral crown is as simple as situating a crown on top of a head or a lid onto a bottle of toothpaste, but it’s actually a little more complicated than that. There are a few steps involved with fitting oral crowns onto chompers, and we’ve laid them out here.

Preparing the tooth. Before our dentist can place your oral crown, they have to prepare the tooth receiving it. This means they’ll mold your tooth — and in some cases, they’ll install a foundation — before application. The amount of tooth the dentist will need will depend on the state of your tooth and the type of crown you’ll be having fitted.

Making the impression. Once your tooth has been prepared, we’ll need to create an impression of your teeth, either with a mold or through digital means. The impression will be sent to a dental laboratory where your permanent crown will be made. Although the impression will be fashioned in about five minutes, you can expect to wait between a couple of days to a couple of weeks for your crown to be finished.

Applying the temporary crown. While your permanent crown is being made, you will wear a temporary crown in the area where your permanent crown will be placed. This is prepared by our oral laboratory, is usually made of plastic, and will be fitted with temporary adhesive so that we can remove it once your permanent crown is ready.

Installing the permanent crown. After we’ve received your permanent crown from the dental lab, we’ll remove the temporary crown and ensure that the permanent crown is a tight fit for your oral cavity. Every now and then the permanent crown will need slight reshaping before we install it.

Oral crown application might be more complicated than you thought, but the experience won’t be a hard one for you at Northport Prosthodontics in Northport, New York. Call 631-262-0644 now to pencil in your next checkup with Dr. John Poulos to make sure that your oral health future stays bright.