Crown lengthening may be recommended for a few reasons but it may surprise you if you were just planning on getting a tooth restoration for a cracked or decayed tooth. Read on in this blog from Smillie Dental to find out why crown lengthening may be necessary before we can place dental crowns on your teeth.
What Is Crown Lengthening?
The visible portion of your tooth that protrudes from the gums is known as the crown portion of your tooth. We can also construct artificial crowns known as dental crowns which are used to restore damaged or broken teeth.
Sometimes there isn’t enough of your natural tooth crown being exposed to attach a dental crown so we need to surgically reshape your gums and underlying bone to expose more of your natural tooth and less of your gums.
Reasons to Undergo Crown Lengthening
Crown lengthening can be performed for cosmetic and restorative reasons. Gummy smiles are typically a huge incentive for crown lengthening.
Gummy Smile – If you have a gummy smile, this means your gums are prominent when you smile which may cause some insecurity. It can also increase your risk of oral health problems and bad breath. The gums are at a higher risk of becoming inflamed and contracting gum disease.
Treat Decay – If you have tooth decay that develops in a portion of the tooth that is covered by the gums, we may need to perform crown lengthening to access the decay for removal and a filling. If you require a dental crown depending on the extent of the decay, this will also create more space for better retention of the dental crown.
Create Space for a Crown – People may need a dental crown for a variety of reasons – to cover up cosmetic imperfections, because you have a large filling, or because your tooth broke at the gum line.
Whatever the reason is, crown lengthening creates more tooth space to increase the success rate of dental crowns. If there is too little tooth surface to place a dental crown, this is a sign that too much gum tissue is covering your teeth.
By pushing them back and revealing more of your tooth, we have more space to work with. Less tooth space means they’re at higher risk of failing due to becoming dislodged or the bonding wearing off.
Prepare Your Teeth for Dental Crowns
At Smillie Dental, we want you to enjoy your tooth restorations for as long as possible. If you would benefit from crown lengthening, we may recommend that you undergo this procedure before receiving dental crowns in Port Orange.
Crown lengthening has the potential to improve the aesthetics of your smile and give better prospects for the long-term success of your restoration. If you aren’t sure if you need crown lengthening, contact us at Smillie Dental today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Joseph Smillie or Dr. Helen Smillie.
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