There's not all that much to remember when you have dental crowns. You, of course, have to remember to keep them clean—while not being too aggressive with your brushing habits. You'll want to avoid accidentally scratching the surface of the crown, whether that surface is porcelain, acrylic, or metal. Although it's going to sound a bit strange—what you always must remember is that you in fact have a dental crown.
Function and Form
Once a dental crown is fitted, it's easy to forget that it's even there. But isn't this kind of the point? A protective shell (the dental crown) is fitted over the deficient tooth, restoring it in both function and form. It looks like a natural tooth, and as far as anyone else knows, it is one. But the attention that a dental restoration requires during a regular dental checkup is slightly different than the needs of a natural tooth.
Plaque and Tartar
One of the fundamental parts of a dental checkup is professional dental cleaning. This removes plaque and tartar (which is calcified plaque) from your teeth. You need help to shift that plaque, and your own toothbrush can't get rid of tartar. This principle works on both natural dental enamel and dental restorations (your crown), but a specialized approach is needed for restorations.
Your Restoration
As seamless as your dental crown looks, and as natural as it feels, you must always remind any dentist or dental hygienist cleaning your teeth that you in fact have a crown. If your checkup is performed at the clinic that fitted your crown, they'll already have access to your records. In other clinics, a dental professional will notice that you have a restoration, but it's smart to inform them beforehand. The way in which natural dental enamel is professionally cleaned differs from the best method for cleaning a restoration, so you want to eliminate the possibility of your crown being improperly cleaned.
Removing Tartar
Debridement is the method used to remove tartar, which is a safe way to scrape the substance off your teeth. It's simply a matter of the dentist using a nylon or plastic sheath on the burr used to clean your crown. Should the burr be ultrasonic, it will be used on a lower frequency. This reduces the intensity of the vibrations, to preserve the adhesive bonding the crown to the underlying tooth. A plastic or nylon protective sheath prevents the surface of the crown from being scratched. Any scratches on a restoration create a hollow where potentially harmful oral bacteria can accumulate, so is best avoided.
Your dental crown will certainly be cleaned along with the rest of your teeth, but your restoration needs a certain approach to prevent the possibility of any damage. Contact an office like Family Dentistry Of Woodstock for more information about dental crowns.
Share6 January 2022
Hi, my name is Kevin Nelson and I want to tell you about my experience. I had a painful tooth so I went to see my dentist. After the examination, he said that I needed to have a root canal to save the tooth. I told the dentist to just pull the tooth instead and then he explained why that wasn't a good idea. He said that pulling the tooth would cause additional problems and then he told me what could happen. I didn't want any more problems, so the dentist did the root canal and I'm glad that he did. I wanted to write a blog to tell others about the benefits of a root canal and what to expect during the procedure. I hope that by getting the word out, other people won't make the same mistake that I almost did by getting a perfectly good tooth pulled.