Tag Archives: Gilbert CEREC crowns

CEREC crowns

Should I Switch Dentists to Get A CEREC Crown?

I need to get a crown. My best friend swears by CEREC crowns, but my dentist said he prefers to use his lab. Are they worth switching dentists to get them?

Morgan H. – Mississippi

Morgan,

A lot of really good cosmetic dentists have lab preferences. That’s because they have a close working relationship with them and they know the quality of work they do.

How good a crown is depends more on the skill of the dentist and lab than the brand.

The biggest benefit to CEREC crowns is the same day service. But, if you’re getting it on a front tooth, you may prefer a beautiful crown over a quick crown.

The decision is yours, of course, but if you’re happy with your current dentist, I wouldn’t necessarily think it is worth switching dentists over. On the other hand, if you aren’t too happy with your dentist, it might be a way for you to get a fast crown and check out a new dentist.

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

CEREC crowns

Gums Not Healing After CEREC Crown

I’m not sure what to do. I had a CEREC crown done about two months ago. The hygienist warned me my gums would be tender for a couple of weeks. She recommended salt water rinses and ibuprofen.  It’s been much longer than that and my gums aren’t healing. Should I go back?

Elisabeth D. – Mississippi

Elisabeth,

Your gums should have healed from your CEREC crowns by now. If you’re in pain, it’s a sign there is an infection and you should definitely go back and have an x-ray done.

If you’re not in pain, I would see if the problem is getting between your crown during flossing. Sometimes it’s a little harder to do our dental hygiene and that can cause tenderness.

Try getting one of those flossers that have a handle. It will make it easier to get down in there and really clean it out.  If you do that for another week and it is still not healing to your satisfaction, then I would go back even if you’re not in pain.

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

CEREC crowns

Referral To Dentist For CEREC Crowns On Front Teeth

I’d like to get a referral to a dentist to get CEREC crowns on my front teeth. I really like the idea of having them done in one day so I don’t have to walk around for weeks with those unnatural-looking temporaries on. They always fall off and I have such trouble with them. The last thing I want to do is go through all that with my front teeth. My dentist normally does CEREC crowns- that’s how I know about them, but he said he won’t do it that way with my front teeth. I’m not sure why, but I think it’s because he charges more for the other kind. I’m thinking about going somewhere else, just so I can get CEREC crowns done on these. Any recommendations?

Bill – Portland

Dear Bill,

CEREC crowns have their limitations. They are fabulous for saving time and limiting how many visits you need, but they’re not always the best choice for aesthetics. If the dentist you already see does CEREC crowns, then it sounds like he’s a fan of them, but also recognizes when they might not be the best choice.

It takes a lot of work to make a restoration look natural. If you think about it, your tooth is made up of layers, and there’s a perfect mix of colors blending, as well as opacity. With traditional lab-made restorations, they try to mimic it by adding layers of porcelain, shading the restoration, and glazing it. CEREC crowns are a single block of material that is trimmed down to match the shape of the tooth. Although it can blend in pretty well in the back of the mouth, it’s very difficult to make them look natural in anterior teeth.

If you want your teeth to look beautiful and natural in the long run, it’s probably best to heed your dentist’s advice and go with the standard lab-made ones. Yes, you’ll have to wear the temporaries, but this is just for a couple of weeks, compared to the possibility of being stuck with front teeth you don’t like for a decade or more. If time is a huge concern for you, mention it to your dentist. Sometimes the lab can “rush” cases or prioritize yours so it gets processed quicker. There’s usually an extra fee for this, but you may find it worthwhile if you’re eager to have your new smile quicker.

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

CEREC crowns

An “Unusual” Question About CEREC Crowns

I’m a big believer in the “Their are no stupid questions” philosophy.  Though, if you’ve ever read Yahoo Answers, you’ve likely realized sometimes you have to be very charitable to keep that philosophy.  One of my favorites was someone asking how Lindsey Lohan was cloned for the Parent Trap.  Well, I’ve recently had a question in that ilk.  I received a question wondering why their dentist’s printer will print out cerec crowns, but when they try to print out a CEREC crown on their printer they only get a picture of one.

Now, maybe this is a joke. But, just in case it isn’t I will answer the question.

Your dentist doesn’t print out a CEREC crown on a printer. Instead that use a very sophisticated piece of machinary (The CAD/CAM System) that can cost up to $80,000. This machine mills your crown out of a block of porcelain.

Your printer simply reproduces pixels of color on a sheet of paper. There’s no way to get a crown out of that. Even if you had a 3D printer, which is capable of printing actual objects and not just pictures, it would print in plastic, not porcelain.

Your best bet is to continue going to your dentist for your dental crown needs.

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

CEREC crowns

Intereting Yahoo question on CEREC crowns.

I recently came across a question about CEREC crowns on yahoo that I thought was interesting.

I recently had a Cerec crown put in. I was told how great this was and that they go in take a picture that make a 3d image of the tooth and they send it to the mill that makes it. My understanding was that it was supposed to make this perfect fitting crown.
Well I ended up in the dental chair for about 3 hours. She said she had to pic a generic image from the database because my tooth was so damaged or in bad shape. This seemed odd to me and didn’t make since due to what I was told before. The crown did not fit when it was created. I noticed a lot of red area on the sides on the screen and she was doing a lot of hand manipulation to the 3d model. The crown didn’t filt. She had to hand grind the sides and a lot off the top. It seemed like it really sat up very high. As if it was made way to high. She had to do a lot of grinding to it so it felt natural. It seems like it’s a alittle lower then the surrounding teeth and doesn’t seem to have that natural tooth look. Almost looks a little too smooth. It is also a little wider on the outside at the base then the rest of my teeth. I would have assumed it would been pretty even. Also it seems a little sensitive. I don’t know if that’s normal for a period of time or not. Its been almost a week. It just don’t feel strong. I wonder if it is not seated in properly.
Now when I went to the Cerec site. It seemed as if it was supposed to be a nearl perfect fit. Would pnly take a fraction of the time. And only minor modification if any. I also sen the image of how it looks when they take the image. My tooth looked identical to this, so Im a little concerned why she is saying it was because the tooth was in bad shape as to why they couldn’t fit it right or get a proper model of it. It looks from the site that they could make a copy of the top tooth to know how it would fit. My understanding was this was what they did. But they only took a image of the prepared tooth which again looked like the images in their flash presentation. Did she do something wrong and is trying to cover it up? What about the sensitivity and such?

Here are my thoughts….

This patient definitely needs to see another dentist to have it checked.  A lot can go wrong with a dental crown and I’m afraid this one has some serious problems.  If indeed the crown needs to be replaced, then he dentist the caused the problem in the first place, should pay for the replacement and any other repairs that need to be attended to.

There is something that puzzles me.  This patient said that their dentist had to take a generic image from the database because their tooth was in “such bad shape”.

The CEREC crown system is made to deal with teeth that are in bad shape. Teeth that are in good shape don’t need crowns. The software asks the dentist to input which tooth is being crowned. It in turn gives the dentist a starting point for designing the crown, showing him or her what the tooth is supposed to.  The dentist is also given the images of the surrounding teeth and  opposing teeth. This gives the dentist all the information needed to fit the crown perfectly. Clearly, this dentist didn’t know what they were doing.

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

CEREC crowns

Cleaning CEREC crowns

I had a lot of damaged amalgam fillings nad my teeth degraded further. As a result I needed crowns.  I opted for CEREC ones to save on appointment time. My two rear molars continually trap food. Sometimes floss helps, but not always.  Is there a different method with crowns for getting food out?

Jen H. – Little Rock

Jen,

Dental floss holders can sometimes help you reach places that are tougher to without them, but that is not really your problem.  Go back to your dentist and let him or her know what is going on.  The margins to your CEREC crowns were left open on your crown.

If that’s not repaired your going to end up getting decay under there. If that happens, your crowns will have to be re-done at your expense.

If you go back now and your dentist fixes the mistake (at his own expense), you’ll be much happier.

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

 

CEREC crowns

CEREC crown or lab made crown

Is it better to get a CEREC crown or a traditional crown made in a lab? By better I mean natural looking.

James H. – Alabama

James,

The biggest advantage to CEREC crowns is convenience. You can have  your permanent crown done the same day as your appointment. There will be no need for a temporary crown and return appointment.

The question as to which one is more natural looking, while a good question is asking the wrong thing.  Either crown, traditional and CEREC, can look natural in the hands of a skilled dentist.

An artistic dentist can make just about any crown match your teeth and look stunning.  In the hands of a lesser skilled dentist, it wouldn’t matter what type of materials and / or lab you used. It will look terrible.

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

CEREC crowns

Can CEREC crowns not match?

I got a CEREC crown. It doesn’t match my other teeth at all. I told him I wanted it white, but it’s more white than my other teeth. It doesn’t look natural. I thought they could be made to match my teeth.

Nerry G. – Oklahoma

Nerry,

Yes, CEREC crowns can be made to match any teeth. So, there should have been no problem getting them the same color as your other teeth.

In your particular case, you could do teeth whitening in order to get your natural teeth the same tone as your new crown.  That’s much easier than if your crown was darker. In that case you’d have to completely re-do the crown.

It sounds to me like your dentist understands the mechanics of dental crowns, but not the artistry involved with color and translucency.

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

CEREC crowns

Can CEREC crowns be made to look like vampire teeth?

My girlfriend is a huge fan of Twilight.  I’m going to propose to her despite this one very obvious fault.  As a sign of my undying (get it?) devotion, I want to get crowns put on my teeth that look like vampire teeth. Will CEREC crowns do this? I want to spend as little time as possible on this.

Cedric B. – Cape Cod

Cedric,

That is devotion. While CEREC crowns can do this, you want to think about whether you want to permanently change the shape of your natural tooth. In order to have a a crown put on, your natural tooth has to be ground down in order to fit the crown.

If you’ve already got a crown on that tooth and are wanting another one placed instead, that should be fine. I will tell you most dentists are not comfortable placing permanent vampire teeth. You might get them to give you a temporary crown, but that is it.

If you don’t have a crown on that tooth, there are other ways to get the vampire shape, such as bonding, that won’t require such a drastic change to your teeth.

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

CEREC crowns

Will I save money with a CEREC crown?

Is it cheaper to get a CEREC crown over a porcelain one?

Amanda B. – McClean, VA

Amanda,

CEREC crowns are also porcelain crowns, they’re just milled by a machine instead of a lab.

They’re not necessarily cheaper or more expensive than traditional porcelain crowns. It depends on the dentist what the cost is.

What you will save is time, which as the saying goes, “Time is Money”.  You can get your crown in one appointment instead of two, which means you won’t have to go back into the dental office missing an additional day of work.

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