Orange County Dental Crowns

Crowns are needed when a tooth or teeth are too badly decayed or broken to be restored with a filling or when a tooth has had root canal treatment. Crowns strengthen and protect the remaining tooth structure and can improve the appearance of your smile. Excessively worn or stained teeth can be made to look great with all porcelain crowns, and crowns are also placed on dental implants to replace missing teeth.

Crowns, (or caps), can be made entirely of gold for the very back molars, porcelain fused to a gold substrate for strength and beauty, or they can be made entirely from hybrid porcelain for maximum esthetic results.

Before

After

We provide our patients with several types of crowns (sometimes called "Caps"):

• Conventional porcelain bonded to high-noble alloy (gold / platinum / palladium).
• Pure All-Ceram, CAD / CAM milled substrate (Procera)
• Ultra-High Gold PFM (Captek)
• Pure Gold (all metallic, usually only at the patient's request).

The margin, or edge, of a crown is critical, and is where most crown (and bridge anchor) failures occur. We finish the margins of all our crowns (and veneers and fixed bridges) using the high magnification provided by our microscopes, along with using smooth, concentric electric driven diamond burs for a super smooth bevel. If any crown or bridge that Blossoming Smiles ever provided acquires decay (other than due to medical reasons, such as radiation therapy, etc.), it is replaced at no charge to the patient.

p u r e c e r a m i c c r o w n s

Without a doubt, the newest of these innovations involves the fusion of advanced information technology and the craftsmanship of classic "hand laid" porcelain. This new system, called "Procera", gives you the strength of the traditional gold / porcelain crown (which is how over 95% of all crowns are currently made), while providing the beauty and translucency of porcelain. In essence, the metallic, grayish metal underpinning found in most of today's crowns is replaced by an aero-space porcelain foundation. You've probably seen that unsightly "gray line at the gum" on existing crowns (for yourself or other people) that can be caused by the current mainstream metallic-based technique.

Blossoming Smiles creates Procera crowns as well as CEREC Crowns by shaping your teeth in the same way that is done for other types of crowns, but that's where the similarities end! With Procera Crowns, your impression and mold is scanned by computer, and the virtual model of your teeth is sent via modem to Goteberg, Sweden. Once in Europe, the inside of your crown is created with incredible precision by a computerized milling machine. The final result, which looks like a porcelain "thimble", is Fed-Ex back to Rancho Santa Margarita, Orange Co. and our ceramic artisan and porcelain is applied to the thimble, layer by layer, until the truly natural appearing crown is completed. With CEREC Crowns, your impression and mold is scanned by computer and a virtual model is generated right before your eyes. From this virtual model we generate you final restoration and your crown is created with phenomenal precision by a computerized milling machine in a SINGLE APPOINTMENT for your convenience. We promise, you will leave our office with your final restoration the same day!

If you're interested in looking into your possibilities for enhancement of your smile with metal free, ceramic based, cosmetic dentistry, please give us a call (949) 216-9090 and take advantage of our complimentary SMILE consultation policy.

If you ever need to replace a medium to small silver filling or gold inlay, or if one of your back teeth has decay, we can also offer another new technology called "CEREC" inlays and onlays. This material is porcelain and is matched to the color of your tooth. Since it is a porcelain, we can take advantage of its ability to utilize light-sensitive bonding technology for a near perfect seal with your tooth. While Procera and CEREC Crowns are ideal for a crown that covers your entire tooth, a CEREC inlay or onlay is appropriate for the replacement of regular fillings or routine decay. It's less expensive than a crown, and less tooth structure is removed to create your new restoration.