Tag Archives: same day crowns

Retouching Teeth Whitening

I whitened my teeth several years ago and would like to retouch them before I have to get my dental crown. This way I can make it into the color I want. The problem is my dentist can’t tell me how to go about this. I’m hoping you can. My dentist has a 33% of whitening gel. Here are my questions. First, how many weeks should I use the gel? Second, for how many hours each day should I whiten?

Audrey


Dear Audrey,

Image of teeth whitening trays
Professional teeth whitening trays

There are not specifics that work with teeth whitening like that. However, there are general principles. I don’t know exactly how white you want them. The most basic of these principles is that the longer you wear the whitening gel, the faster your teeth will whiten. If you wear them overnight, which is the most effective time to bleach, your teeth will whiten much faster than if you just wear the trays for an hour a day.

As an example, and this is most definitely not exact, if you wear them overnight, you could do in one week, what wearing them an hour a day would take you eight weeks. Again, not exact, and it depends on how white you want them.

The one sure principle, is something you have not asked. You will need to wait two weeks from the time you finish whitening until you match the crown color. This gives the whitening the time to settle to its final color before you start with the porcelain crown.

One thing to bear in mind here. If your dentist was not able to answer these basic cosmetic questions, then how can he or she provide you with a beautiful crown? You may want to at least make sure your dentist is going to do a temporary try-in and let you make sure everything matches in a way that is beautiful before permanently bonding them on. If you’re not happy with the crown, he should be willing to send them back to the lab.

This blog is brought to you by Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.
Click here to learn about same day crowns.

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.

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.

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.