Dental Crowns
Durable Restorations for Beautiful Smiles
Whether it’s due to poor oral hygiene or trauma while playing sports, there are many reasons why teeth can become damaged or decayed. No matter what the cause is, our team at Huckabee Dental is prepared to restore the strength and beauty of your smile with custom-made dental crowns in Southlake! These high-quality restorations allow us to correct decay, damage, and other issues in a natural-looking way. If you’d like to find out if this restorative treatment is right for you, continue reading or make an appointment with our team today!
What is a Dental Crown?
Also known as a “cap”, a dental crown is a restoration that fits over the entire visible portion of a tooth. It’s made of high-quality zirconia, designed to match the shape, size, and shade of your natural teeth perfectly. Your results will look virtually unnoticeable – only you will know you’ve had dental work done!
Our team will typically recommend dental crowns for patients with:
- Severely decayed teeth
- A broken tooth
- A tooth that has just received root canal therapy
- Gaps in their smile that will be replaced with dental implants
- A bridge that needs to be anchored in place
- Misshapen or discolored teeth
The Process of Getting a Dental Crown
The first step on your journey towards a restored smile is a consultation with our team. We’ll conduct a detailed examination to ensure you’re a good candidate for a dental crown. During this appointment, we’ll also carefully review your medical history and check for preexisting oral health conditions.
Once that’s done, we’ll prepare the tooth before taking impressions of the affected area, which will be used to create your crown. Although this restoration can be made out of several materials, we typically use zirconia because it’s the most beautiful and lifelike.
After your impressions are taken, you’ll be given a temporary crown to maintain your appearance and chewing ability until your permanent dental crown is ready. It can take a few weeks for your crown to be crafted in the dental laboratory. When it’s ready, you’ll return to the office for its placement. We’ll show you how to properly care for it so you can continue enjoying it for years to come!
The Benefits of Getting a Dental Crown
By choosing to get a dental crown in Southlake, you can expect to enjoy several incredible benefits. Some of those include:
- Ability to last over 15 years with proper care and maintenance
- Versatile treatment that can correct multiple issues, including decay and discoloration
- Protect natural teeth from further damage
- Natural-looking results
- Improved comfort and chewing ability
Dental Crowns FAQs
Are you thinking of getting dental crowns in Southlake? If so, you’re on the right track! These dental “caps” will fix your tooth damage and help your teeth look better than ever. That said, you should probably learn more about them first. Doing so will help confirm whether crown treatment is your best option. Luckily, Huckabee Dental can help things along: here are the answers to some frequently asked crown questions. By reading them over, you can find out what treatment entails. Otherwise, you’re always free to call our office for relevant details.
How Long Do Dental Crowns Last?
In general, a dental crown lasts around five to 15 years. This number can vary, though, depending on various lifestyle factors. These include:
- Diet – If you eat lots of sugary or acidic foods, your crowned tooth could suffer decay. Its crown would then need to be removed for treatment purposes.
- Oral Hygiene – Unless your mouth stays clean, food bits, plaque, and bacteria could infect your tooth. Therefore, crowns tend to last longer when you brush twice daily and floss once daily.
- Bad Oral Habits – You could chip your prosthetic if you grind your teeth or bite your nails. Alternatively, smoking might trigger gum disease that causes crown failure.
Do Dental Crowns Get Cavities?
Ultimately, a crown can’t get a cavity; it's made of artificial materials. Still, the tooth beneath it can.
You see, a crowned tooth has the same risk of decay as an uncrowned one. Poor oral hygiene could let bacteria form where the tooth meets the crown. From there, the germs could wreak havoc on your enamel.
Thankfully, you can prevent cavities in crowned teeth like any other - by brushing twice daily, flossing once daily, and seeing your dentist for regular checkups.
Can Dental Crowns Be Whitened?
Unfortunately, a crown can’t be whitened like natural teeth can. Its features don’t allow that to happen.
The issue lies with how teeth whitening works. Its bleaching gel can enter your enamel and remove its stains, but the substance can’t do the same for the crown material. Therefore, your prosthetic should always remain the same color.
Still, there are ways to work around this problem. You could, for instance, ask your dentist about whitening before crown placement. That way, the final cap will match your smile’s ideal shade.
Are Dental Crowns Covered by Insurance?
Put simply, yes – insurance does tend to cover dental crowns. Most will even cover 50% of the payment after you’ve paid your deductible. However, be mindful that coverage may not apply in some cases.
Of course, crowns can be affordable even without insurance. Some practices offer financing options to ensure care meets your budget. Huckabee Dental, for one, provides the following:
- Special Offers: Currently, our office is running a special on consultations. You can get an initial visit (and a second opinion) for free by taking advantage of it!
- In-House Membership Plan: By paying a low monthly fee, we’ll give you (among other things) a 15% discount on any non-preventive procedures.
- CareCredit Financing: By working with CareCredit, our practice lets you pay for a treatment in monthly installments. That way, you can cover the cost of crowns over time – you won’t have to pay for everything at once.