Are you looking to get either a dental crown or a filling to address your tooth issue? Your choice depends on your tooth’s current condition that requires repair. Whenever you have a tooth problem, you must schedule an appointment with your Bethesda dentist for advice. Waiting too long to address your dental issues will only make it harder to resolve them.
What to Know About Dental Crowns
Dental crowns are commonly used for fixing teeth that are at risk of being lost. They can restore damaged teeth that are no longer functional and give back their strength. Your teeth must be strong to perform their job properly. When one tooth is weak and cannot function, you can get it replaced with a dental crown.
Dental crowns are placed over your teeth. To complete the placement process, you may need to visit your dentist twice.
Dental Fillings
Dental fillings are meant to repair teeth cavities, which are small holes in your teeth that grow continuously. Cavities are due to tooth decay, which occurs due to the buildup of plaque and bacteria. Filling a cavity may be able to save your tooth. These days, there are different filling options you can choose from such as gold, silver, porcelain, and metal.
Dental fillings are designed to fill teeth holes, preventing further decay. Normally, you can get it done with just one visit to your dentist.
Factors to Consider to Determine Your Choice
Whether you need a dental crown or filling depends on the following factors:
- Cavity size. The cavity’s size is a factor that helps you decide whether to get a dental filling or crown. If your tooth decay is left untreated for a long time, it can get deeper and larger. When detected on time, you can have your cavity filled with a filling. But tooth decay that has impacted a big part of your tooth may need to be fixed with a crown.
- The condition of your tooth. If you have been getting several fillings for a tooth, you might want to get a crown this time. Your tooth can become weak when its original structure is replaced by more fillings. Soon, it will no longer withstand normal chewing and biting. As a result, the tooth may break or crack completely. A crown will protect this tooth from infection.
- Broken or cracked tooth. Dental crowns are designed to look like natural teeth, making them a great choice to repair cracked, chipped, or broken teeth. It protects your tooth from further damage. There is no point in getting a filling for a cracked or restored tooth.
