Dentist Questions Dentist

How do you tell if a tooth crown is not fitted properly?

I am a 52 year old male. I want to know how can I tell if a tooth crown is not fitted properly?

6 Answers

You ask a great question. Hopefully, you have wonderful confidence in your dentist, and this question is not necessary. However, here we are. The only other way is to have an expert examine it. I assume you have questions about it that you did not mention. Therefore, it is not possible for me to give you a specific answer. There must have been a decay issue of some sort, or you would not have had the crown placed. For the best information about how to never have any decay again, read the book:
GROWING A HEALTHY CHILD, SECRETS FROM A WISE ONLD DOC.
You should be able to tell if a crown is not fitted properly if your bite feels awkward or you are getting food stuck around the crown or you are feeling pain or have sensitivity.
Simple answer (1.) do the other teeth touch like they used to, (2.) does the floss ‘snap’ in between each side of the crown (except the back of the last tooth in the arch), (3.) does it move up/down when eating sticky things?
There are several ways to tell if a crown doesn’t fit properly. If your floss catches on it when you go down below the gum line that’s not a good sign, or if you get food stuck between your teeth because the contact isn’t tight with the next tooth; lastly, you ask a good dentist to examine it and that is the most reliable way in which to tell if the crown fits properly.
Usually an x-ray will show if the crown is fully covering all sides of the tooth adequately. Also, a dentist can feel with his explorer if an open margin may exist. Otherwise, a crown may not fit properly if the patient’s bite feels off, or if the crown has too much or too little pressure between itself and the adjacent teeth.
A number of things suggest that the crown may not be fitted properly:

-The angulation or positional appearance of the crown
-A gap between the crown and the adjacent teeth
-An obvious gap between the bottom of the crown and the tooth it is sitting on. This can sometimes be seen visually, sometimes an instrument can be fitted between the crown on the tooth, and sometimes on X-ray there is a distinct a gap between the crown on the tooth that is sitting on.
-If the bite is high when you bite down

Thanks,

Nathan