Tag Archives: dental crown second opinion

Ceramic Crowns

Will New Dental Crowns Help My Swollen and Bleeding Gums Heal?

Will new dental crowns help my swollen and bleeding gums heal? After almost two years of gum swelling and bleeding with new dental crowns, my dentist removed the crowns. The lab remade the temporary crowns in April, but I have the same problem with them.

Last week, I saw a periodontist who recommended that I keep wearing the temporary crowns and not allow my dentist to have the lab make the final crowns. Duh. What is going to help my gums heal? I’m scheduled for a second opinion next week. It’s with a dentist who did a quick consultation after my dental cleaning. The dental hygienist said I had extra cement around the crowns that seemed to be irritating my gums. It’s obvious that the crowns are causing the problem, but will new crowns help my gums heal? – Thanks. Titus from OH

Titus,

Natural teeth possess specific contours that are crucial for maintaining healthy gum tissue. Ideally, a dental crown should precisely replicate these natural contours to ensure long-term gum health.

An over-contoured crown can lead to several complications for your gum health. The crown can exert excessive pressure on the surrounding gum tissue, causing irritation and inflammation. Additionally, the exaggerated bulge of an over-contoured crown creates an environment where food particles can easily become trapped, making effective cleaning challenging and fostering bacterial accumulation. These factors contribute to the development of gum disease, characterized by redness, swelling, and bleeding.

Addressing Excess Cement Around Dental Crowns

Your comment about the hygienist removing excess cement is a point of concern. The thorough removal of all excess cement by the dentist during crown placement is crucial to the quality of dental care. Incomplete removal of cement is a lapse in professional standards and can contribute to gum irritation.

Removing the excess cement and getting new dental crowns may relieve your gum irritation and bleeding. However, a second opinion from another periodontist (gum disease specialist) will determine whether you need gum disease treatment.

Check the credentials of your second-opinion dentist to ensure he or she has advanced cosmetic dentistry training. Ask to see before-and-after photos of the dentist’s cases with crowns.

Plano, Texas, female dentist Dr. Miranda Lacy sponsors this post.

Ceramic Crowns, Dental Crowns

Can an Electric Toothbrush Loosen a Crown?

After getting teeth whitening and new crowns, I invested $150 in an electric toothbrush in July, and I think it loosened my crown. I received two crowns in May, and one is loose. I intended to take good care of my teeth and minimize cavities because I want to stay out of the dental office unless it’s necessary. But within the past two weeks, I’ve felt my crown loosening. The loose one is a crown on a post. I stopped using the toothbrush already, but are the vibrations known to loosen crowns? I wish I had asked about this before spending money on the toothbrush. Thank you. Giada B. from NJ

Giada,

Sonic vibrations in electric toothbrushes help loosen plaque, but they are not strong enough to loosen the cement from your dental crown.

Dentists use high-powered ultrasonic scalers to remove a cemented dental post from a tooth. But the tip is rigid and transfers the full strength of the vibrations wherever a dentist applies it. Even with this instrument, a dentist must press firmly on the post for an extended period to loosen a post.

The vibrations of an ultrasonic or sonic toothbrush are gentle. If your post and crown are cemented properly, the toothbrush will not loosen them. But a loose dental crown is a problem. Schedule an appointment with your dentist right away. He or she will remove your new crown and determine why it is loose.

You received your crowns in May—so they are not old or worn and should not be loose. It seems that something went wrong in the cementing process, and your dentist must stabilize your crown to prevent damage to it, your bite, and other teeth.

If your dentist can’t resolve the issue, schedule a second opinion with an advanced cosmetic dentist with training in occlusion and bite. Hopefully, it will not be long before you can enjoy your brighter smile and new crowns.

This post is sponsored by Plano, Texas, female dentist Dr. Miranda Lacy.