Skip to content

pelionchess

Health & Fitness

Menu
  • Aesthetic Dental
    • Charming Smile
    • Veneers
    • Whitening
  • Dental Care
    • Dental Caries
    • Dental Surgery
    • Oral Diseases
  • Dental Tips
    • Bad Habit
    • Dangerous Food
    • Maintaining Dental Health
Menu

Quality Dentistry: How Long Do Dental Crowns or Caps Last and Can They Get Cavities Under Them?

Posted on April 4, 2022

Quality Dentistry: How Long Do Dental Crowns or Caps Last and Can They Get Cavities Under Them?

Providing long-lasting dentistry that looks good and feels good has always been a priority for me. When my patients had treatment in our office, like a crown or a cap the dental work would still be going strong 20 or more years later. I was very proud of that. All of my meticulous attention to details and quality was paying off.

And then, something started to happen. It started slowly, but became a trend. When patients were coming in for their routine exams I began to find that the margins or edges around these older crowns were not sealed microscopically. How could this happen? The crowns were still in great shape.

I realized that the problem was with the cement that is used to hold the crowns on teeth and seal out bacteria. The crowns were doing great, the cement – not so much. Cements that were used in the past are susceptible to being worn away by the digestive acids in the mouth. It takes a long time, but is something to be aware of. Everything can look and feel good from the outside, while cavity bacteria is sneaking in and starting new cavities underneath the crown. This is not good news. Even though it wasn’t my work that was failing, I felt bad for my patients.

The truth is – insurance companies will usually pay for new crowns every 5 years. Crowns that are made well, with quality materials, in a fairly healthy mouth can last much longer. Crowns don’t self-destruct at the 5 year mark. However, I learned that instead of being proud of how long my work is lasting, it might be good to replace my patient’s crowns when they get 10-15 years old. I consistently find cavities under these older crowns. The cements that are used now are better than the ones that are failing, but we won’t know for a long time how long they will truly last.

There is something important to think about here. If you may be retiring or losing dental benefits and have old crowns, you might want to have your dentist remake your dental treatment so you are in good shape for the years to come. You don’t want a lot of dental needs in retirement. I usually recommend my patients with several crowns allow about 4 years for this process due to the yearly maximum benefits of most insurance plans. We often do one quarter of the mouth each year. This maximizes the insurance and keeps your out of pocket expenses down.

My hope is that this information helps you take care of yourself. Whether you are planning to retire or just aware that some of your dental work might be getting old, I encourage you to talk to your dentist. Being proactive may save you a lot of time, inconvenience, and money.

Archives

  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • January 2022
  • November 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018

Categories

  • Bad Habit
  • Charming Smile
  • Dangerous Food
  • Dental Care
  • Dental Caries
  • Dental Surgery
  • General Article
  • General Articles
  • Maintaining Dental Health
  • Oral Diseases
  • Veneers
  • Whitening
©2023 pelionchess | Design: Newspaperly WordPress Theme