Crown
Written by Dentist Rune Skou, 2008-21-12Last update: 2010-01-01
A crown is an expensive but effective treatment for repairing teeth.
What is it?
A crown is a hollow shell which is placed over the remains of a tooth to replace its natural crown.
It can be made of metal, ceramics or a combination of the two.
Why is it used?
Crowns are used on chipped teeth where repairs with fillings aren’t possible.
They’re also used to protect teeth at risk from breaking: teeth with large cavities, for example, may require a crown to be effectively treated.
What are the risks?
If a crown is used to treat a tooth that hasn’t undergone a root canal procedure, there’s a 10% chance of the nerve inside the tooth dying. If this happens, the tooth will need a root canal.
When doing a root canal through a crown, the hole is filled using a composite filling after the procedure has been completed.