Dental Services- Crowns & Onlays

Onlays

Onlays are a conservative alternative to full coverage dental crowns. Also known as indirect fillings, onlays offer a stronger, longer lasting reparative solution to tooth decay or damage. These restorations are beneficial from both an esthetic and functional point of view. Onlays preserve the maximum amount of healthy tooth structure while restoring decayed or damaged areas, helping to ensure functional longevity. The procedure does not require the complete reshaping of the tooth. Onlays are extremely stable restorative solutions that can actually strengthen a damaged tooth.

Placing Onlays

An onlay procedure is completed in two dental visits. During the first visit, Dr. Stevens will prepare the damaged tooth. A digital or molded impression of the tooth is then taken and a provisional onlay (sometimes known as a temporary) is placed during this visit to protect the tooth while the permanent onlay is being fabricated at the dental laboratory .
During your second visit the temporary is removed and the new onlay is placed. We will check all margins to ensure a smooth fit with tight adjacent contacts and check your bite to ensure that there are no occlusion-related problems affecting the margins of the restoration. Once fitted, the onlay is bonded onto the tooth and the margins are polished.

Crowns

Crowns can restore your teeth, allowing you to bite more comfortably and smile even wider! They can add more structural stability to a tooth that is decayed, cracked, discolored or broken and can also replace a missing tooth when placed over an implant. Crowns can change the size and shape of the tooth, increasing its function and improving its looks.

By eliminating the need for the supportive metal core, an esthetic all-ceramic crown can be created with a reduced thickness of material. Additionally, the elimination of the metal core allows for light transmission through the porcelain for more life-like properties and a higher level of esthetics.

Placing Crowns

A crown procedure is completed in two dental visits. During the first visit, Dr. Stevens will prepare the tooth and take a digital or molded impression of the teeth to send to a dental laboratory. A fitted, temporary crown is created during this visit to temporarily protect the tooth while the final restoration is being made in the dental laboratory.

During your second visit the temporary is removed and the new crown is placed. We will check all margins to ensure a smooth fit with tight adjacent contacts and check your bite to ensure that there are no occlusion-related problems affecting the margins of the restoration. Once fitted, the crown is cemented or bonded onto the tooth.