Restorative Dentistry

~ fixer uppers ~

Tooth decay can do a real number on teeth. When bacteria get a hold of the food that you eat they put off acid as a byproduct. Eating away at your tooth, this acid forms a cavity that grows larger and larger over time making a home for more and more harmful bacteria. Dental radiographs (X-ray images) and your regular checkups help us find cavities early so that we can clean out the decay and restore your tooth with beautiful filling materials to give it its natural look again.

Now what if a lot of tooth structure has been lost? If a tooth has a large filling or if the stresses of biting and grinding have caused cracks in the tooth itself, your tooth likely needs a protective covering that surrounds the tooth and prevents it from splitting apart altogether. A tooth at high risk for being catastrophically damaged or lost needs to be covered and protected. This custom-made protection is called a crown and is placed on a tooth that has been specially prepared to receive it. And what do we use to make these crowns? Only the highest quality modern crown materials, including porcelain and zirconia materials that are stronger and more beautiful than crown materials of the past. Not only that, these modern materials can be thinner and lighter meaning that we keep even more natural tooth structure than in the past as well. Yep, they're that good. The majority of the time this crown procedure can even be completed in the same day without the need to deal with a temporary crown for multiple weeks like in the past.