Crowns areMore Effective Than Ever Before!

Teeth are made from the strongest material in the human body: enamel. While the organic material is even stronger than bone, that doesn’t mean it can’t break down over time. This has been an issue for human beings for literally thousands of years, and the dentists at Blue Coast Dental couldn’t be happier to have natural-looking solutions today to resolve damaged teeth.

However, these materials were not always easily accessible. In fact, it’s quite incredible learning how dental crowns came to be what they are today. In our November newsletter, we want to briefly examine the history of dental crowns, their purpose, and how they’ve dramatically improved over the years. If you are in need of a dental crown, don’t wait to give our office a call and we’ll help build a treatment plan that works for you!

A Brief History of Dental Crowns

Model smile with dental crown restoration

While our highest priority is keeping teeth healthy, Blue Coast Dental understands that teeth can effectively act as sort of a canvas for your smile as well. According to research published Thomas J. Zumbroich and Analyn Salvador-Amores, humans have been using ornaments to cover teeth for as many as 4,000 years. Based on their research, tribes in Southeast Asia, specifically in Luzon, an island part of the Philippines, would use crowns for ornamental purposes and as symbols of wealth, rather than to restore damaged teeth.

Additionally, some of the earliest work on the practice of placing dental crowns for medical purposes comes from Pierre Fauchard, often touted as the father of modern dentistry because of his work released in the early 1700s surrounding restorative dental techniques and denture construction. However, the American Dental Association notes that Claude Mouton described the specific use of placing gold crowns as early as 1746.

All in all, it seems that dental crowns have had many different purposes over the years. Only in the past several hundred years were they realized to have long-term restorative properties that extended the lifespan of natural teeth, despite decay and/or injury.

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What the Crowns of Today Look Like

Today, you can still get dental crowns made from gold or other heavy metals, even if they aren’t exactly the most aesthetically appealing to everyone. Alternatively, you can get a crown that is highly customized by dental professionals and made with tooth-colored materials like porcelain. These crowns are designed to not only blend in with the rest of your smile, but actually keep your smile functional for many years to come.

At Blue Coast Dental, Dr. George Cho is an expert in designing and placing dental crowns. As a fellow of the American Board of Prosthodontics and the American Academy of Restorative Dentistry, you can trust him to provide you with the latest in dental materials, techniques and technology, as well as restorations that make you feel confident about your smile.

Why Dental Crowns Matter

Dentist checking smile after dental crown placement

When a tooth has been damaged, it doesn’t only put your oral health at risk. It also puts your neighboring teeth at risk, as tooth decay is quite an infectious disease. Once we’ve removed all the decay and bacteria from your damaged tooth, we can ensure that significantly less discomfort and sensitivity stems from this tooth by covering it with a dental crown. Not only that, but we can prevent future fracture, which only increases the risk of needing a root canal (which requires a crown anyway) or an extraction (which would require replacing the entire tooth, increasing your overall costs dramatically.)

In conclusion, our office is dedicated to restoring teeth with durable and natural-looking options so you can live your life without worry and save money on future dental care costs. If you are long overdue for a dental crown or you have not yet completed a treatment you’ve already started, we hope that you give our office a call and take the steps necessary to protect your long-term smile and oral health!

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