Westpark Helpful Dental Articles
West Park Dental’s Crowns Have Lasted Over 20 Years
Perhaps the most common reason for putting a crown on a tooth is that it previously held a large filling that now needs replacement due to additional decay, but there was not enough healthy tooth structure remaining in which to set a filling.
A crown can be used to stabilize any kind of fracture in a tooth, other than a fracture that has cracked to the root of the tooth. A filling would not stabilize the tooth, but simply fill the cavity. Crowns are strong enough and mechanically sound enough to withstand the same type of forces that a natural teeth experiences while functioning in the mouth.
A crown is considered a conservative treatment because it allows us to save the tooth instead of extracting it. There is minimal removal of the tooth surface in order to securely place a crown with the same amount of overall space between the teeth. By saving the tooth we also keep the surrounding teeth on either side from moving and endangering the integrity and stability of the patient’s bite.
The average life expectancy of a crown is ten to twenty years, at the very least five years. At West Park Dental we carefully place crowns with the goal of having them last for many years. In our practice, it is not uncommon for me, as a newly practicing general dentist, to see a patient for the first time and learn that a crown in their mouth was done by my father Dr. Michael Gallagher in the 1990’s—over 20 years ago! I am proud of my father for the work he has done, especially when I see it from this perspective as a dentist myself and hear first-hand testimonials from happy patients.
Dr. Brian Gallagher
West Park Dental
Cleveland, OH
New Patients Welcome
www.westparksmiles.com
Posted 08/31/2020
