Dental Crowns for Children
What are Dental Crowns for Children?
There may come a time in your child’s life when a simple filling is simply not enough. When a tooth breaks severely, has been damaged or has a large area of decay, we may recommend placing a crown. These dental crowns help to essentially cover the damaged tooth and restore it to its full size and shape. Not only does this provide cosmetic benefits for your child, but it provides functional benefits as well.
Why might Dental Crowns for Children be needed?
It’s not uncommon for kids to break, chip, crack or fracture one or more of their teeth. This can happen when rough-housing with siblings, playing sports or simply normal wear and tear each day. Likewise, a crown may be needed if your child has a tooth with a severe amount of decay that cannot be fixed with a filling alone. In either case, a crown can be made and placed over the tooth.
Who is a candidate for Dental Crowns for Children?
To determine if a crown is necessary, we’ll perform an examination as well as take x-rays of their teeth. This will give us a clear idea of whether or not a crown is needed and if so, the best way to go about placing it. We can replace older crowns as well, so be sure to consider this if your child’s crown is showing signs of wear or damage. If your child needs a crown, we recommend having one placed to prevent further damage to the tooth.
What happens during the Dental Crown process?
The first step will be to numb the area with a safe, effective local anesthetic. Once numb, we work to file down the damaged tooth. This helps to remove any viable decay as well as sharp or jagged edges. Once the tooth is filed down, we fit a crown over the tooth and make adjustments as needed. The crown is then permanently cemented into place and your child is free to leave the office with you. For crowns on permanent teeth, we often take impressions of your teen’s smile and have a custom-made crown created for them. The crown is then placed at a second visit to give it time to be made.
If your child needs a new dental crown, call our office today so that one of our staff members can answer any and all of your questions.
