Category Archives: CEREC crowns

Why Are My Crowns Turning Yellow?

I had two CEREC crowns done and am a bit frustrated. I’ve only had them a few months and they’re already picking up stains. I do drink coffee, but no one told me not to. Is this something I am going to have to give up drinking coffee? If so, I wish they would have told me that. Is there a procedure I can have that will allow me to drink coffee? Will I be able to whiten them back to their original color?

Stan


Dear Stan,

A CEREC Machine
When Should You Get a CEREC Crown?

Teeth whitening will only work on natural tooth structure, so I would not count on that to do any good. Sometimes people are told they are getting porcelain crowns, when their dentist actually gives them a composite resin. This will pick up stains very quickly. I would not think that is what happened to you because you mentioned that you had it done with CEREC crowns which mills from blocks of porcelain.

The porcelain has a protective glaze which protects it from staining. In fact, it should be more stain resistant than your natural teeth. If they are picking up stains, then something happened to damage the glazing. Some possibilities are if your hygienist used something like a power prophy jet or acidulated fluoride. If this happened then, they should bear the responsibility of repairing this.

If they didn’t do this, it is possible you used something that caused some damage to your porcelain crowns. Most whitening toothpastes use abrasives to remove the stains on your teeth. While it does remove some surface stains, the abrasives scratch both your tooth enamel as well as any dental work you have. This means they will quickly begin to pick up stains.

As for your coffee drinking, as long as you get the protective glaze back on your dental crowns, you should have no problem drinking coffee. I do recommend you use a safe whitening toothpaste, however, designed specifically for dental work. Supersmile whitening toothpaste will remove all the surface stains without causing any damage to your teeth or dental work.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

Are Same-Day Crowns as Good as the Traditional Ones?

I had a crown placed several years ago. It was done by the computerized machines that do it the same day. Before doing the crown, she used a drill to remove a metal post. When I went back for a checkup this year with a new dentist, she told me that the crown was not fitting well and would need to be redone. She also said the post should have been removed using an ultrasonic to remove the post by vibration. As I am about to replace the crown, I am hoping you can help with with two things. First, did drilling the post damamge the bone structure? Second, are the same day crowns as good as the porcelain ones? I liked the convenience, but want the best crown.

Carol


Dear Carol,

A CEREC Machine
When Should You Get a CEREC Crown?

The drilling will not have damaged the bone. Dentists are drilling on teeth regularly. There is a risk, however. That comes with the fact that the drill could slip while in use and perforate the root of the tooth, which would lead to needing to extract and replace the tooth.

As to whether your other dentist should have used an ultrasonic device or not, that is always the ideal and I hope they tried that first, but there are times that those posts will only come out with a drill.

Before you replace this crown, I would like you to get a second opinion. When she said the crown wasn’t fitting properly that was quite vague. Did she mean the margins were open, and by that I mean gaps? That would be a reason to replace the crowns. But, if that was the issue, why not just say that? If that isn’t an issue than your crown is probably fine. Hence, the second opinion.

You asked a great question about whether the same day crowns are as good as the porcelain ones. The answer is yes. In fact, both are porcelain. The same day crowns are milled by a computer from a single block of porcelain. Traditional crowns are created by a ceramist and may use a variety of blocks of porcelain.

I hope this helps.
This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

My CEREC Crown Doesn’t Match

Hi there,

After I got home from my CEREC crowns appointment, I noticed my crown was a different shade from the rest of my teeth. Getting the CEREC crown was quick and convenient, but the result is brighter than the rest of my teeth.

I did not want to bother my dentist again, so I tried to fix the problem by whitening the rest of my mouth. However, this did not work and the crown is still too bright.

Is there a way for my dentist to make my crown a different color? I like my CEREC crown, it fits perfectly, but I want a natural smile.

Max, from Friendship, Pennsylvania

Hi Max,

porcelain block for CEREC crowns

Your dentist can change the color of your crown, but he will have to redo it. If you get the crown redone, be sure to first have them use a temporary try-in paste so you can check it under many different light sources – natural lighting, camera light, bathroom lighting, as much as you can. This will give you the best idea of what your crown will look like when you go home with it.

If the CEREC crown still does not match, you will have to send it to a dental laboratory, which will need to be done through your dentist. A master ceramist can match the color, but it may take several attempts. This will lengthen the time it takes to get your crown, however.

The ceramist will have to cut back part of crown’s ceramic and apply a porcelain overlay. Porcelain is easier to color match. CEREC crowns are milled from a block of porcelain, making them very strong but the block is all the same color. Without any shading, it may look unnatural.

CEREC crowns are some of the newest dental technologies, and cosmetic dentists require skill to work the machine. If you want your crown redone, you may need to see a different cosmetic dentist, one who is more experienced with CEREC.

This blog post is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist CEREC crown provider, Dr. Matthew Roper, of Vista Dorada Dental.

CEREC Crown Hurts

I had a CEREC crown done on a tooth. This isn’t my first crown, but it is my first CEREC crown. For some reason, this one hurts when I bite down. Is that something peculiar to this type of crown? I’ve never had that happen before?

Jeff

Dear Jeff,

Man in pain, grabbing his cheek in need of emergency dental care.

I truly do not believe the pain you are experiencing is because it is a CEREC crown. Most of the time, CEREC crowns fit better because they are precisely milled by a computer. So, what COULD be causing your pain?

The first reason could be that the bite is too high. If it isn’t seated in the correct place, then when you bite down all your biting force is going to that one spot instead of being spread across all your teeth. This can cause some substantial pain. If this is the case, your dentist can adjust the crown and you should have no further problems.

You didn’t mention if you’d already been back to your dentist and this has been done. If the crown has been adjusted and you are still experiencing pain, the next step would be to check for a lingering infection. If you had this crown placed after a root canal treatment, there can be a canal that was missed. Though our teeth only have a limited number of canals, many times they have branches that shoot off into other parts of the tooth. A dentist can do everything right and still not be able to get everything the first go-round. In that case, a re-treatment can be tried. If you do need a re-treatment, I generally recommend you see a root canal specialist to increase your chances of success the second time around.

Even if you didn’t have a root canal treatment, there could still have been an infection there. Sometimes, the infections are small and hard to read, but get easier as the infection grows. A simple diagnostic x-ray should help determine if this is the cause of your pain.

I would start with these two avenues of inquiry as they are the most common.

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CEREC Crown Disaster

I was told getting a CEREC crown would be a snap and fit better than other crowns. Not only was I in the chair for over three hours, but the crown didn’t fit properly. She said it was because my tooth was in really bad shape so she had to take a general model from the database. It doesn’t fit at all like my normal teeth or even my other crowns. In fact, she had to grind it down because it didn’t fit in properly. Now it hurts. What do I do?

Carol

Dear Carol,

porcelain block for CEREC crowns

Something is wrong here. Let’s start with your dentist’s statement that she had to use a general model from the database. Her reasoning that the tooth was in too bad of shape doesn’t make much sense to me. Of course the tooth was in bad shape. That is the whole point of needing a dental crown! Why would you put a crown on a healthy intact tooth?

CEREC crowns should fit better than other crowns because they are designed and milled using precision software. However, computer software is only as good as the person programming it. Though, this software is pretty user friendly. For instance, let’s say you were missing your lower left molar. Your dentist would program that in and the software would give her a basic shape to use for that type of tooth to start the design. From there, images of your surrounding and opposing teeth give her the remainder of the information she needs to input into the software. Then it designs the crown.

Your crown is uncomfortable and she had to do grinding on the tooth, so clearly this didn’t happen properly. There are so many things that can go wrong with a dental crown. Here are just three:

  • Open margins. If the crown does not fit the tooth perfectly around the complete circumference of the tooth, then you will have a gap where bacteria can get in leading to decay under your crown.
  • Bite Design. When a bite isn’t designed properly, it throws off occlusion and you will end up with painful TMJ Disorder issues.
  • Poor Contouring. If the tooth is not contoured properly, you will have gum inflammation, which will lead to gum disease.

What this boils down to is you need to have this tooth looked at by another dentist. If they can tell you what is wrong with it, you can get either ask her to re-do the crown or ask for a refund and have it redone by another dentist.

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CEREC Crowns on Front Teeth

I need to get a dental crown on a front tooth, but my dentist doesn’t want to provide it. He insists I won’t like it. Yet, he offers CEREC crowns. It doesn’t make sense to me. Why does he have the machine? Should I go to a different dentist to have it done?

Alan

Dear Alan,

Close up of front teeth

My guess is your dentist uses the CEREC crowns on teeth other than the front two teeth. There is a reason for this. When a CEREC crown is made, it is milled out of a single block of porcelain. This does fine on other teeth. However, if you look closely at the teeth above you’ll notice the teeth aren’t uniform from top to bottom. There are differences in opacity. When you get a traditional porcelain crown, which your dentist is suggesting, it is formed from several different blocks of porcelain in order to mimic those differences.

So, you have a few choices. You can go to a dentist who cares less about how the results will turn out and more about bringing in the fee from a patient in order to get the same-day crowns. Or you can listen to your dentist and allow him to do the traditional crowns.

It is your teeth and your smile. So, if having the best result isn’t as important to you as the convenience of one appointment, which is totally fine, then I would switch to another dentist to get the crown you want. You could also tell your dentist you understand it won’t look as good, but you still want CEREC and would prefer he get the fee than another dentist. Then, he may go ahead with it.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.

CEREC Crowns Doesn’t Fit

I thought CEREC crowns were supposed to be more accurate because they are milled by a computer. I had a four-year-old crown break so I needed to get another one. I was in a hurry and my dentist just got the CEREC machine that is supposed to create your crown in one appointment. When I got the crown it was way too bulky. I came in again and she could see it was too big in spots. While she did grind it down in some of those spots, I am biting my tongue now every time I eat. Is this technology not what she painted it to be or is something else going on?

Mark

Dear Mark,

porcelain block for CEREC crowns

I think the problem here is more your dentist than the CEREC technology. First, she provided you with a dental crown that broke after just four years. They shouldn’t break, especially when they’re that “young”. That by itself tells me she struggles with some basic dental skills.

Now she has this great new technology. Normally, when you are preparing a crown with the CEREC machine, it is basing it off of a tooth that is already there and has been scanned into the program. Because your tooth already had a dental crown and now that was broken and gone, there wasn’t a previous tooth for her to base the crown on.

That being said, the software has the ability for the dentist to design a crown for a tooth that is no longer there. It’s fairly easy to shape the tooth using the software. The problem is she doesn’t know how to do that yet.

You have a couple of options here. The crown needs to be replaced. It also needs to fit so perfectly you don’t even know it is there. Nor, should you bite your tongue because of its fit. You can either have her provide you a traditional crown that is made in a laboratory, but again, I’m concerned that the last one only lasted four years.

Alternatively, you could just ask for a refund and go somewhere else to get your crown done. You may want to do this to make sure you get the right crown.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper. We’re open Saturdays.

Help! My Crown Keeps Coming Out!

Hi there,

Last year, I had a same-day CEREC crown done on one of my teeth. I was happy with it at first, but since then, it has fallen out several times. Each time I go back to the dentist to get it fixed, but it always falls out again. Finally, I went to a different cosmetic dentist. He replaced the setting for the crown, and said that I should get a new all-porcelain crown, as it would stick to the cement better. I just want my tooth to stay put, like it’s supposed to. I’m not sure what else I can do.

Nephenee, from South Carolina

 

Hi Nephenee,

No matter what material your CEREC crown was made from, it will stay permanently once properly placed and bonded. Making a new crown will not fix the problem, as it is not the crown’s fault it keeps coming out.

Crowns need strong cement and to be properly shaped to stay in place. If your dentist over-prepared your crown and shaped it too much, no cement will be able to hold it in.

It’s likely your crown was prepared with inadequate retention form in mind. You will need a crown specialist to properly shape your tooth and cement it in place. Look for a dentist with experience in dental crowns, or another CEREC dentist in the area.

This blog post is brought to you by Gilbert CEREC crown provider, Dr. Matthew Roper, of Vista Dorada Dental.

 

My Porcelain Crown Keeps Falling Off!

Hi there,

I was issued a same-day crown, which I thought would be fast and convienent, but in the year since I’ve gotten it, it has fallen out a handle of times!

I went to see a different dentist, who changed the setting of my crown, and gave me a zirconia crown. However, even this one has fallen out! He says that a different porcelain crown will stay in better.

Is this dentist right? Should I go to another dentist? Should I give CEREC another try? What should I do?

Nancy, from Trenton, New Jersey

 

Hi there Nancy,

When CEREC same-day crowns are done correctly, they will stay put permanently. CEREC crowns are made from a milled block of ceramic, but no matter what material you use to make a crown, it does not affect whether the crown will stay in.

There are two things that affect whether crowns will stay in. One this is the type of bonding used to cement the tooth into your mouth. The stronger the cement, the better the hold. The other factor is the shape of the tooth. The tooth needs a little bit of tapering to look natural, but the more taper done to the tooth, the harder it will be to bond it into your mouth. It is likely that your tooth was not tapered properly, which is why it keeps falling off.

You should go see a dentist in the area that specialized in crowns. It is very uncommon for crowns to fall out as many times as you have experienced.

This blog post is brought to you by Gilbert CEREC crown provider, Dr. Matthew Roper, of Vista Dorada Dental.

 

 

Is My Pain Caused by my CEREC Crown?

Hello there,

I had three CEREC crowns done on my back teeth recently. I was pleased with how convenient getting the CEREC crowns was, but since then, I’ve had a lot of pain when chewing. Eating anything crunchy or chewy causing a bolt of pain, as though a nerve is exposed or something. My dentist has shaved down some of the crown. He says the pain I feel is from how I grind my food when I chew. Is that the case? I’ve tried being more careful when I eat, but the pain I feel makes me nervous during meals.

Richard from Amityville, New York

 

Dear Richard,

There are a few reasons that can cause a new crown to hurt. One reason may be that the crown is too high, so the rest of your teeth hit it first when you bite into something. The second reason is that the tooth under the crown may be infected. The infection can cause inflammation in the jaw, causing constant jolts of pain when biting or chewing.

Your pain is unlikely to be caused by how you chew your food, as you did not have this problem prior to the crown. Also, CEREC crowns are supposed to fit exactly to your mouth’s specifications, as they are milled to fit your teeth precisely.

Since your dentist has tried to grind down the crown, your pain is not likely to be caused by hitting too high on the crown. You will need to find out if you have an infection, and where it is in your mouth. An X-ray will be needed, and you may want to seek a second opinion if you do not trust your current dentist’s skills.

This blog post is brought to you by Gilbert CEREC crown provider, Dr. Matt Roper, of Vista Dorada Dental.