Crowns

Stainless steel crowns are metal caps used by dental professionals to repair a decayed primary teeth and prevent them from decaying further. They are made to fit the exact size and shape of a child’s tooth and used to cover large or deep cavities. We use stainless steel crowns from 3M ESPE. These come in prefixed shapes and sizes and adapted to the child’s tooth by customization in the clinic itself.

Why use stainless steel crowns ?

Stainless steel crowns are used as an alternative to silver and tooth-coloured fillings. These are strong and cover the entire tooth. They have a very smooth surface that makes is easy to clean and they may last upto 5 years.

Stainless steel crowns:

• may offer an alternative to removing a decayed tooth
• keep a space in your child’s mouth for a permanent tooth
• will fall out naturally when the baby tooth falls out
• contain only safe metals
• are simple to apply

Post procedure instructions

• your child will need to be careful not to bite their numb lips and cheeks (until the local anaesthetic has worn off usually upto 2 hours)
• your child may find that biting feels unusual but the feeling will return to normal in a few days
• your child’s gums may appear blue – this is due to the colour of the metal under the gum tissue
• it is important that your child brushes his teeth regularly.
• avoid giving your child sticky foods like chocolate or pizza which may move the crown out of place.

A stainless steel crown will not protect the rest of your child’s teeth from decay. It will protect only the tooth it covers from further decay. So making sure your child continues to take good care of their teeth is still important.