Ask our staff.

Tooth Crown Work

Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra, Oakleaf, Orange Park

Tooth crowns, sometimes called caps, cover the entire outside of your tooth. They are used to preserve a severely damaged or weak tooth, especially after a root canal. Dr. Blankenship offers all-porcelain and porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM) crowns.

Uses for tooth crowns

A tooth crown can save a very damaged tooth, when fillings or porcelain onlays are not an option, and the tooth would otherwise have to be extracted. Crowns can be valuable:

In teeth where decay is too extensive for tooth-colored fillings, inlays, or onlays
To strengthen a tooth that is weak, brittle, or crumbling
In fractured teeth
Where fillings have failed
To cover and seal severe tooth erosion
To anchor a bridge
After a root canal
As the artificial tooth attached to a dental implant

Crowns can be beautiful

You have probably seen gold crowns, crowns that are dark near the gum line, or even tarnished crowns. Even in the back of your mouth unsightly crowns are visible when you talk and laugh.

Dr. Blankenship uses CEREC technology to create all-porcelain crowns in a single office visit. Porcelain looks and feels like tooth enamel. It interacts with light in the same way, so it does not stand out next to the surrounding teeth.

To learn more about CEREC, please read How Dental Crowns Are Made.

Your crown will be custom-made to the exact shape and color of your natural tooth, unless you are enhancing the shape or covering discoloration with the crown. It will also be created to meet properly with the opposing tooth, making it comfortable, longer lasting, and preventing the development of Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMD).

If you prefer PFM crowns, Dr. Blankenship can provide those as well. PFM crowns have less pearly shine than all-porcelain crowns, but will still be matched to the shape and color of your existing tooth.

When tooth crowns are not an option

In some cases a tooth will be too damaged for even a crown to save. This can be due to very extensive decay or fracturing.

If a crown is not appropriate for your tooth, Dr. Blankenship may instead recommend using a bridge or a dental implant to hold a porcelain tooth. If your tooth is not so damaged that a tooth crown is required, he may suggest a porcelain inlay or onlay, or porcelain veneers.

Please read Questions About Your Dental Crown to learn more.

If you believe that you may need a dental crown, please contact us today to schedule an appointment at our Ponte Vedra and Oakleaf offices. During your complimentary cosmetic consultation, Dr. Blankenship can help you decide if a tooth crown is right for you.