In our dental practice in Zurich, we reconstruct severely damaged teeth with high-performance tooth crowns and ceramic crowns in the long term and safely. In cooperation with our experienced dental technicians, we give your teeth a healthy and natural appearance.
How
Tooth crowns belong to the so-called indirect restorations, ie they are not modeled directly in the real tooth like a filling and then hardened, but made indirectly from 100 % ceramic in the dental laboratory or a computer-controlled milling machine. As a rule, the fabrication of an artificial tooth crown requires one to three sessions, depending on the procedure. The tooth crown - whether milled directly in the practice or manufactured by a dental technician - is chemically bonded to the tooth using special cements. This bond is very strong and can last for many decades. According to scientific studies, the average survival time of indirect restorations (inlays, onlays, dental crowns or dental bridges) is approx. 25 years. With good care, you can even extend the shelf life of your dentures. A well-cared-for crown can last up to 40 years or more before it needs to be replaced.
What exactly happens during dental prosthesis treatment?
In an initial treatment, the dentist prepares the damaged tooth in a very complex and precise manner. In order to restore a tooth with a tooth crown, a conventional treatment is made of the affected tooth with a precision impression material. If the tooth crown is made of ceramic, the attending dentist then determines the appropriate color for the entire tooth so that the material can be individually selected for your tooth color in the dental laboratory. The finished impression is then sent to the dental laboratory, where the actual restoration is made.
Between the two sessions, the affected tooth is protected with temporary dentures made from a special plastic so that you can chew and eat normally. However, it is recommended to avoid particularly sticky food and chewing gum during this provisional phase, as the provisional inlay / onlay can come off in individual cases.
In the dental laboratory, the impression is poured with a special hard plaster and an exact jaw model is created in which the prepared tooth is clearly visible with all details. In the classic procedure, the later tooth crown is modeled from wax and tested in an articulator (dental technical device that simulates the patient's jaw and chewing situation). With the help of the wax model, a casting mold is made into which the material for the final inlay is poured (gold or composite metal ceramic crowns) or injected under high pressure and temperature (ceramic crowns). The dental technician then finely works and polishes the blank of the tooth crown.
After approx. 5-7 days, the finished tooth crown is back in our dental center and can be connected to the patient's tooth in a second session.
To insert the new crown, the dentist brings a special adhesive or cement into the tooth crown and places it on the tooth. Afterwards, possible residues of the cement are neatly removed and the edges of the tooth crown are finely polished. This step will prevent inflammation of the gums. Once the tooth has been ground in, you will be able to chew, speak and swallow properly again. Tooth crown
When
A dental prosthesis is always used when a tooth is so badly damaged that the remaining hard tooth substance is insufficient for a plastic filling or an inlay / onlay. In this case, a ceramic crown must be made for the damaged tooth so that the remaining tooth substance is protected. With this method, the affected tooth can be preserved even longer.
This is often the case, especially in patients who have already had a root canal treatment. Often there is only a little healthy tooth structure left on the treated teeth. The tooth crowns are therefore made of high-performance ceramics which, thanks to their different properties, meet very high aesthetic standards and are extremely stable.
The artificial crown is a proven method of tooth restoration with a predictable outcome and a very good prognosis. In particular, the prognosis of teeth with a root canal treatment can be significantly improved by a tooth crown.
CEREC crowns
As an alternative to the conventional procedure, in some cases the crown can also be fabricated directly in the practice in one session. Instead of the conventional impression, a digital impression is created with an intraoral scanner directly on the treatment chair. Based on this scan, the tooth crown is then milled from high-performance ceramics in our milling machine and used directly or after a sinter firing. After only a short time you will receive your finished crown in place. Since this means that you do not have to make a temporary crown, this can ideally reduce your costs. In addition, you save the cost of a second session.
Your treating dentist will be happy to explain to you whether this is possible in your specific case.
costs
The price of a tooth crown depends on many different factors. All-ceramic crowns are usually more expensive than CEREC crowns. But how much can a dental crown cost?
Laboratory-made ceramic crowns cost around CHF 1200 - 2200, depending on usage, location and aesthetic layering.
CEREC ceramic crowns cost between CHF 995 and CHF 1550, depending on the ceramic material used and the location.
Further information on the cost of dental crowns can be found in our price list.
Even more answers about dental crowns & Co.
What is the difference between CEREC crowns, direct crowns and laboratory-made crowns?
Probably the biggest difference between direct ceramic restorations such as CEREC crowns and laboratory-made dental crowns is the time and cost involved.
In contrast to laboratory-made dental crowns, the CEREC crowns can be made and milled on site. In such a case, the new crown can be used for dental prosthesis treatment within 1-2 hours.
The ceramic used is slightly softer than a fired ceramic and is therefore not recommended for patients who tend to crunch (bruxism) or clenching at night. A restoration made from Emax or zirconium oxide ceramics is more suitable for these patients. These can also be produced directly in the center. Basically, such an artificial crown can be made in just one day. However, dThe treatment is a little longer due to the additional firing time of the ceramic.
Especially in aesthetically visible part or for larger restorations we recommend having the restorations made by a dental laboratory. The result of the restorations (inlay / onlay / veneer / crown) by the dental technician is often even better than that of the directly milled restorations. The layered ceramics in particular look even more natural with these artificial tooth crowns.
Your attending dentist will be happy to explain to you which tooth crown is suitable for your specific case.
Types of crowns by function
Nowadays there are a multitude of different types of dental crowns. Each type of crown has a different function. A distinction is made between replacement crowns, protective crowns and anchoring crowns.
But what is their function actually?
Replacement crowns are one of the most classic types of dentures. They are used in the case of a large tooth defect to replace the natural tooth crown.
Protective crowns are always used when the hard and firm tooth enamel has been lost. Which means that the dentin is free and unprotected. A common trigger for this is acids that etch away tooth enamel. These acids are mostly found in extremely acidic drinks such as fruit juice or lemonade, as well as in certain types of fruit again. However, it can also be the case that in some patients the enamel is generally not formed correctly (amelogenesis imperfecta). Regardless of the reason for the lost enamel, the aim of the protective crown is to protect the exposed, soft dentin again.
The task of an anchoring crown is to anchor the dentures. A dental prosthesis can be a bridge, for example. In this treatment, the affected tooth is replaced as a whole and the two neighboring teeth are crowned as a bridge.
The telescopic crown is a special form of the anchoring crown. This special type of crown is used to attach a removable prosthesis to remaining teeth. The telescopic crown is also known under the name of the double crown, which already gives an indication of the two-part crown construction. The inner tooth crown, also known as the primary crown, is firmly attached to the ground tooth. Then the outer crown - the secondary crown - is placed on the primary crown. This construction only holds by frictional resistance and can be removed again and again. The secondary crown is built into the removable prosthesis, which can be securely anchored to the remaining teeth.
Types of crowns by size and extent
Types of crowns according to the type of anchoring
Dental crowns are differentiated not only in terms of their functions, but also in terms of size and extent. A basic distinction is made between partial crowns and full crowns.
As the name suggests, the partial crown only covers part of the tooth. This type of crown is always used when the tooth is so damaged by caries that a filling is no longer sufficient, but not so much that a full crown is necessary. The partial crown can then only cover the chewing surface of a tooth, for example. The transition between the inlay and the partial crown is very fluid.
Compared to a partial crown, a full crown replaces the entire natural tooth crown. It acts like a cap that is attached to the tooth stump underneath. The aim of a full crown is to fully restore the chewing function. A big advantage of this type of crown is that it looks very similar to a natural tooth.
The type of anchoring also offers several options. Depending on how much a tooth has been destroyed by caries or other bacteria, the crown can be attached to it in different ways. When it comes to anchoring, a distinction is made between cemented or glued crowns and the pin tooth.
In the case of fixed dentures, the question of the adhesive or the cement often plays a central role. In most cases, crowns are attached to the natural tooth substance with special "adhesives". Which type of binding agent is required depends on the material of the crown. Metal crowns or veneer crowns are usually attached with a special cement, while ceramic crowns are firmly glued on with a plastic adhesive.
The pin tooth, as it is known colloquially, is a denture that is anchored in the tooth with the help of a pin. These pins are always used when the tooth stump is so destroyed that it can no longer hold the crown sufficiently. Nowadays the pins are mostly made of metal or fiberglass and are attached using plastic. However, this type of crown often requires additional treatment at the beginning. The affected tooth must then undergo a root canal treatment beforehand. In the case of extremely damaged teeth, this treatment is often not necessary.
