White Crowns for Primary (Baby) Teeth
Dental crowns on baby teeth are sometimes necessary to prolong the life of a primary tooth. Premature loss of a baby tooth opens to door to misalignment and malocclusion problems for your children. White crowns for primary teeth, in the proper shape and size, act like natural teeth and don’t require any more maintenance. Call Tiny Smiles Pediatric Dentistry — in Woodbridge, New Jersey, Harlem, NY or the Lower East Side of Manhattan — for the best dental crowns for kids.
What Are White Crowns for Baby Teeth?
White crowns for primary teeth are part of the restorative treatments that pediatric dentists employ to save the structural integrity of damaged teeth. Once a tooth is damaged, problems like sensitivity and pain arise. Originating from an exposed nerve or an infection, these dental issues may escalate to more serious issues needing a root canal treatment or even worse, an extraction.
White crowns for baby teeth replace the damaged enamel cap of the tooth that was broken, chipped, worn away or removed by a dentist to get at an infection. Made from zirconia, a hard tooth-colored substance, an artificial crown is shaped and colored to replace the natural crown, so it’s invisible when in place. A crown also makes the tooth stronger than it was before. The material is also resistant to plaque build-up.
The pediatric dentists at Tiny Smiles Pediatric Dentistry — in Woodbridge, New Jersey, the Lower East Side and Harlem in Manhattan — believe in preventative dentistry measures to protect your children’s natural teeth whenever possible. These kid-friendly, board certified experts in dental care urge all parents to make regular dental appointments for dental cleanings for their children.
Why Are Crowns on Baby Teeth Necessary?
Pediatric dental crowns shield teeth against the outside elements while preventing further damage. Dental crowns for kids are cemented over primary teeth so they’re fused together and function as one. While most crowns are fitted for damaged permanent teeth, kids need to protect their primary teeth as well, since losing a primary tooth too early may lead to misaligned, crooked or spaced-out adult teeth.
There are many ways baby teeth can sustain damage. Dental caries cause more cavities and tooth decay than any other dental problem. But your child may also suffer facial traumas from a fall or a dental trauma from a sports injury. Other reasons your dentist may recommend white dental crowns for baby teeth include:
What’s the Process for Getting White Crowns?
Zirconia white crowns come pre-made in specific sizes for children. This means you don’t need recurrent visits to the dentist’s office. The whole process gets completed in a single visit, alleviating any dental anxiety your children may experience.
To get started, the dentist may administer a sedative to relax your child. Once the sedative takes effect, the process includes a number of steps, including:
The pediatric dentist numbs the area around the tooth.
Your dentist often performs a dental cleaning before the treatment.
The target tooth is prepared by shaping it to receive the crown.
Your dentist then takes an optical impression of the shaped tooth and uploads it into a computer-aided design program that can creates the exact crown needed.
Your child’s natural teeth color is then matched to a dental ceramic block.
A computer-aided machine then shapes the block of zirconia.
The pediatric dentist fits the finished crown on the tooth, makes any minor adjustments and cements it in place.
What Should I Do after the Dental Crown Procedure?
Post-operative care for kids is provided by your dentist at Tiny Smiles Pediatric Dentistry. Make sure your child follows the instructions. Otherwise, your kid could inadvertently bite, chew or suck on the numbed area, dislodging the crown and exposing the tooth’s nerve.
Your child can’t eat or drink anything until the numbness wears off. Brushing at least twice a day and flossing at least once — the same routine as caring for natural teeth — should become a habit to prevent any further decay. Dental crowns on baby teeth protect the tooth until it’s ready to fall out naturally.