Zirconia is built to last for 10 to 15 years.
Dr. Lee will examine and take x-rays of your child’s tooth to look for signs of decay that needs to be removed. He will need to check if an infection is present to determine if a root canal is necessary.
By administering a local anesthetic, your child’s mouth is fully numbed so they can’t feel any pain from drilling.
Using a handheld dental drill, any present decay in the tooth is removed and the tooth is filed and shaped in preparation for the crown.
Dr. Lee will select a premade zirconia crown that fits the size of your child’s tooth. Using a shade guide, he will match the shade of the crown to your child’s natural teeth.
After ensuring the proper fit of the crown, it will be bonded in place with dental cement.
Zirconia crowns are strong and aesthetic white crowns that are metal-free and made from biocompatible zirconium dioxide. Zirconia is the strongest and most durable metal-free material that we can use in dentistry, which is why it lasts just as long as metal crowns without the silver appearance or presence of metal which some patients are allergic to.
This makes zirconia crowns versatile because they’re well suited to covering teeth in the front or back of the mouth. Best of all, they won’t disrupt the aesthetics of your child’s smile and these crowns are biocompatible and non-corrosive.
A pediatric crown placed over a baby tooth will last for the duration of the lifespan of the tooth and will fall out along with the tooth to encourage proper eruption of the permanent tooth.
Preserving the health of baby teeth is very important even though they will naturally fall out. For one, oral health problems can cause significant pain and your child needs their teeth to help them chew, speak, and maintain the aesthetics of their smile.
More importantly, however, the baby teeth help maintain proper alignment and eruption of the permanent teeth. If your child loses a baby tooth too soon, this can lead to shifting teeth and an impacted permanent tooth.
Yes, children can definitely get dental crowns if necessary. Pediatric dentists may recommend dental crowns for children with severe dental decay. In such cases, dental fillings won’t suffice as a treatment option. Children can also get dental crowns if they fractured their teeth in an accident or while playing. Dentists may also recommend dental crowns for children after a root canal procedure to restore the shape of the affected teeth.
No, children rarely feel pain when getting dental crowns because dentists put them under local anesthetic. The dentist, in this case, Dr. Lee, will inject lidocaine or any other viable local anesthetic into the gums near the affected tooth. This stops the nerves from sending signals back to the brain, ensuring a painless procedure.
That said, it’s not uncommon for children to feel pain and mild discomfort after getting crowns. That’s because the crown irritates the soft tissue around the tooth, so this discomfort is normal. Fortunately, you can easily manage the discomfort by giving your child over-the-counter pain medication.
After the procedure, your child will likely experience mild pain and tenderness in the treatment area. This is perfectly normal, and Dr. Lee will recommend specific OTC painkillers to manage the discomfort. Sometimes, Dr. Lee might schedule follow-up appointments to check the progress of the crowns. She’ll also check for signs of re-infection under the crown and whether it fits as it should.
The crowns we use here at Smile Ark Pediatric Dentistry are made from high-quality, durable materials. Our crowns are meant to last several years but will fall out along with your kid’s tooth when the adult teeth come in.
That said, you can do a few things to extend the lifespan of your kid’s dental crown. For starters, you can ensure they brush their teeth twice daily and floss at least once. You should also ensure your child stays away from hard and sticky foods. Biting into hard foods can fracture the crown, while sticky foods can cling to the crown and harbor bacteria.
Yes, kids can eat after getting a dental crown, but they have to wait at least thirty to forty-five minutes before they can do so. This is ample time for the dental cement that holds in time to harden sufficiently.
While at it, advise your child not to chew using the side with the dental crown. Instead, they should chew with the other side of the mouth until the crown hardens completely. You should also avoid giving them hard, sticky, or crunchy foods that can damage the crown.
Yes, pediatric crowns eventually fall out when the primary teeth fall out to give room for permanent teeth. However, it’s not uncommon for the dental crown to fall prematurely. This is especially true for poorly fitted crowns in cases where re-infection occurs beneath the crown.
Pediatric crowns prevent serious oral health problems and tooth loss.
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