Crowns &
Bridges

CROWNS & BRIDGES

A crown is a type of dental restoration which completely caps or encircles a tooth or dental implant. Crowns are indicated when the tooth is too damaged and unable to be restored by conventional filling materials.

There are basically 3 types of crowns:

Full Metal Crowns
— gold or metal alloys

PFM Crowns
— Porcelain fused to metal internal metal coping veneered with porcelain on the exterior

Full Porcelain Crowns
— metal free crowns made entirely of zirconium or aluminium oxide.

The most common method of crowning a tooth involves using a dental impression of a prepared tooth by a dentist. The impression is then send to a dental laboratory and a technician will fabricate the crown. The crown is then bonded to the tooth using a dental cement on a second appointment.

A bridge is a type of dental restorations used to replace a missing tooth (or several teeth) made up of two crowns one on each tooth on either side of the gap.

The two anchoring teeth are called abutment teeth and a false tooth/teeth in between are called pontics. Dental bridges are supported by either natural teeth or dental implants. The process of making a bridge is similar to making a crown.

Bridges

Bridges are natural-looking dental appliances that can replace a section of missing teeth. Because they are custom-made, bridges are barely noticeable and can restore the natural contour of teeth as well as the proper bite relationship between upper and lower teeth.

Bridges are sometimes referred to as fixed partial dentures, because they are semi-permanent and are bonded to existing teeth or implants.

Porcelain, gold alloys or combinations of materials are usually used to make bridge appliances.

Teeth
Whitening

TEETH WHITENING

Teeth whitening or teeth bleaching as it is commonly know is a common aesthetic dental procedure. There are 2 types of dental bleaching available.

In office chair side bleaching – The dentist will apply the bleaching gel on your teeth and bleaching is done in 1 to 2 hours.

Home kit bleaching – The dentist will take an impression of your teeth and send to the dental laboratory to fabricate a customised bleaching tray for the upper and lower arch. On the second visit, the patient will be given the bleaching gel and taught how to use together with the bleaching tray. The patient is expected to use it everyday and progress will be reviewed after 3 weeks.

Bonding

BONDING

There are two types of dental bonding available:

Direct Composite Bonding

Direct Composite Bonding is the process where dentists use tooth-colored composites (white or natural looking materials) to reshape, repair chips or cracks, close gaps between your teeth and build up the worn-down edges of teeth. The composite materials are directly applied and in some cases used in mini smile makeovers. They are also known as direct composite veneers or just simply “bonding”.

Adhesive Bonding

Adhesive Bonding is the process of attaching a restoration to a tooth. This method is used for aesthetic crowns or porcelain veneers. The restorations are made in the dental laboratory. Fitting is done by your dentist and the restoration is “bonded” to the tooth.

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