Dental Crowns, Space Maintainers
Dental Crowns
Teeth which are too broken down to adequately hold a filling or which have undergone pulp treatment, a crown is usually required to strengthen the tooth.
For baby molar (back) teeth, a pre-formed metal crown is often used. These require less preparation of the tooth and are relatively easy to fit in a single visit compared to laboratory made crowns.
For front teeth which are visible when smiling and for adult teeth tooth-coloured crowns are most often used. These are made in a dental laboratory and may consist of porcelain bonded to a metal framework or be completely made of ceramic.
“Strip crowns” often used for front teeth are made directly in the mouth from composite filling material using a celluloid crown former.
Space Maintainer
Primary teeth maintain the spaces into which the permanent teeth will erupt. If baby teeth are lost too early other teeth may tilt into or take up the vacant space, forcing permanent teeth to come in crooked. A space maintainer can be fitted immediately after a tooth is extracted to ensure that the space is kept until the new permanent tooth comes through. It may be fixed to the teeth or removable.
