Some dentists are now offering CEREC crowns, which are devices placed over existing, partial teeth. CEREC stands for Chairside Economical Restorations of Esthetic Ceramic and these crowns offer several key advantages over traditional dental crowns. If your dentist gives you the option of a traditional crown or a CEREC crown, you may wonder what the difference is, and here are three of the main differences between these options.

Number of Visits Needed

The prime benefit of a CEREC crown is that it takes only one appointment to get one, whereas a traditional crown requires two visits. Dentists that offer CEREC crowns must invest in CEREC machines. When this type of machine is used, the dentist takes pictures of the tooth and sends the pictures to the machine. The machine then creates a crown based on the images, and the crown is then placed in the person's mouth.

Traditional crowns are made in labs and take several days or weeks to get. Because of this, getting a CEREC crown is more convenient because the person can get the complete crown by only visiting the dentist one time.

Pain and Discomfort

Besides the fact that traditional crowns require two appointments, it also takes longer to prepare a tooth for them. This is because after the dentist prepares the tooth, he or she must create a temporary crown.

When the dentist inserts this crown, it may need to be adjusted or modified, and then the dentist removes this crown later on when the permanent crown comes in. Both of these visits will most likely require anesthesia, but this is not the case with a CEREC crown.

You will need anesthesia during the process, but you will only have to go through this process once to get the crown.

Chances of Infection

Traditional crowns present a higher risk for infection because:

• They involve temporary crowns, which may not fit perfectly on a tooth
• A dentist must work on the same tooth twice during a short amount of time
• Anesthesia is required twice
• It may not fit as good as a CEREC crown

The chance of developing an infection with a CEREC crown is much lower simply because the entire job is done all at once. Traditional crowns are made from molds of teeth, whereas a computer makes a CEREC crown from digital images of a tooth. Because of this, a CEREC crown is likely to fit better and feel more comfortable.

If you need a dental crown and have to decide between these two options, you might want to stick with a CEREC crown because of all the benefits it offers. Consult with specialists, such as James Tritton DDS PC, to see which option will work best for you.