If you have a damaged, weakened, or heavily restored tooth, your dentist may recommend a dental crown to restore its strength, function, and appearance. Traditionally, getting a crown has involved multiple appointments and a temporary crown while a dental laboratory creates the permanent restoration.
Same-day crowns offer another approach. Using digital technology and in-office milling equipment, your dentist may be able to design, create, and place your permanent crown during a single visit.
At Southern Boulevard Dental Center in Rio Rancho, we can evaluate your tooth and help you determine whether a same-day crown is an appropriate option for your smile.
What Is a Same-Day Crown?
A same-day crown is a dental crown that is designed and fabricated in the dental office rather than being sent to an outside laboratory.
The crown is typically created using CAD/CAM technology, which stands for computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing. Digital impressions and specialized software allow your dentist to create a precise digital model of your tooth and design the restoration based on that information.
An in-office milling machine can then fabricate the crown from a dental ceramic material. After the crown is created and any necessary adjustments are made, it can be bonded or cemented to the prepared tooth.
The entire process may be completed in one appointment for appropriate patients.
Why Might You Need a Dental Crown?
A crown is designed to cover and protect a tooth that has lost significant structure or needs additional support. Your dentist may recommend one because of:
- Extensive tooth decay
- A large filling
- A cracked or fractured tooth
- Significant wear
- A tooth weakened by an injury
- Certain root canal-treated teeth
- Replacement of an existing crown
Crowns can also be used as part of dental implant treatment, although implant crowns are placed after the implant itself has healed sufficiently and are not necessarily completed on the same day as implant placement.
Your dentist will evaluate the condition of your tooth before determining whether a crown is the right restoration.
How Do Same-Day Crowns Work?
While the exact process varies depending on the technology used by your dental office and your individual needs, a same-day crown appointment generally involves several steps.
1. Your Dentist Examines the Tooth
Before creating a crown, your dentist will examine the tooth and surrounding tissues. Dental X-rays or other diagnostic imaging may be recommended to evaluate the tooth and determine whether it can be successfully restored.
If the tooth has an underlying problem, such as extensive decay or an infection, that issue may need to be addressed before the crown is placed.
2. The Tooth Is Prepared
Once your dentist determines that a crown is appropriate, the tooth is prepared by removing damaged or weakened portions and creating enough space for the crown to fit properly.
Your dentist will preserve as much healthy tooth structure as possible while creating the shape needed to support the restoration.
3. A Digital Impression Is Taken
Instead of using traditional impression material, many same-day crown systems use a digital scanner to capture detailed images of your teeth.
The scanner creates a digital model of the prepared tooth and surrounding teeth. This information is then used to design your crown.
4. Your Crown Is Designed
Using specialized computer software, your dentist designs the crown based on the shape and size of your tooth and how it fits with your bite.
The design can be adjusted digitally before the crown is manufactured.
5. The Crown Is Milled
Once the design is finalized, the information is sent to an in-office milling machine. The machine shapes a block of dental ceramic into your customized crown.
Depending on the system and restoration, the crown may undergo additional finishing, polishing, or characterization before it is placed.
6. Your Dentist Checks the Fit
Before permanently placing the crown, your dentist will check how it fits against the prepared tooth and how it interacts with your surrounding teeth.
Your dentist may make adjustments to ensure the restoration fits properly and your bite feels comfortable.
7. The Crown Is Placed
Once everything looks and feels right, the crown is bonded or cemented to the tooth using dental materials designed for the restoration.
With a same-day crown, you can potentially leave the office with your permanent restoration rather than a temporary crown.
Same-Day Crowns vs. Traditional Crowns
The primary difference isn’t necessarily the crown itself; it’s where and how the crown is fabricated and how many appointments are required.
With a traditional crown, your dentist prepares the tooth and takes an impression or digital scan. The information is sent to an outside dental laboratory, where a technician creates the permanent crown. You typically wear a temporary crown while you wait for the permanent restoration to return to the dental office.
At a second appointment, the temporary crown is removed, the permanent crown is evaluated for fit, and it is then placed.
With a same-day crown, the design and fabrication can take place in the dental office. This may allow the preparation, design, fabrication, and placement to happen during one visit.
Not every tooth or patient is necessarily a candidate for a same-day crown, and some restorations may still be better suited to a traditional laboratory-fabricated approach.
What Are the Benefits of Same-Day Crowns?
For appropriate patients, same-day crowns can offer several conveniences.
Fewer Appointments
Because the crown can be designed and fabricated in the dental office, you may be able to complete treatment in one visit rather than returning for a second appointment to have the permanent crown placed.
No Temporary Crown
Traditional crowns generally require a temporary restoration while the permanent crown is being fabricated. With same-day treatment, you may be able to skip the temporary crown altogether.
Digital Treatment Planning
Digital scanning and computer-aided design can provide detailed information that helps your dentist plan and create your restoration.
Convenient Restoration
For patients with busy schedules, completing crown treatment in a single appointment can be a significant convenience.
Are Same-Day Crowns Right for Everyone?
Not necessarily. The appropriate restoration depends on your tooth, your bite, your oral health, and the type of restoration you need.
Some cases may require a laboratory-fabricated crown or another type of restoration. Your dentist may also need to address problems such as decay, gum disease, or infection before restoring the tooth.
The best way to determine whether a same-day crown is right for you is to have the tooth evaluated by your dentist.
Caring for Your Same-Day Crown
Once your crown has been placed, caring for it is similar to caring for your natural teeth. Continue brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste and cleaning between your teeth every day.
It’s also important to avoid using your teeth to bite or open hard objects and to follow any recommendations your dentist provides for protecting your restoration.
Regular dental examinations allow your dentist to monitor your crown and the health of the tooth it’s supporting.
Restore Your Smile in Less Time
Same-day crowns use digital dentistry and in-office technology to streamline the traditional crown process. For patients who are good candidates, treatment can potentially include tooth preparation, digital scanning, crown design, fabrication, and placement in a single appointment.
If you have a damaged or weakened tooth, a crown may help restore its strength, function, and appearance. Contact Southern Boulevard Dental Center to schedule an appointment and find out whether a same-day crown may be right for you!
