How to Take Care of Your Temporary Dental Crown

The traditional and time-honored porcelain crown is still the standard of care when it comes to reinforcing a compromised tooth. Every permanent crown is custom made, though there’s sometimes a gap in time between preparing the natural tooth and the manufacture of the crown. 

During the waiting period, you’re fitted with a temporary crown that protects the natural tooth. By design, a temporary crown isn’t meant to be worn indefinitely, so you must make allowances for the temporary appliance while you wait for the permanent version. 

The crowns specialists at Lee Dental in Frisco, Texas, can help you save natural teeth with damage from decay, injury, a root canal, or that have large fillings that weaken the tooth’s overall structure. We’ll also advise you on caring for your temporary crown ahead of receiving your permanent replacement.

Why do I need a temporary crown? 

Preparing a tooth to receive a permanent crown requires reshaping the tooth so that the crown matches the size and shape of your other natural teeth. Placing a porcelain cover over an unmodified tooth would be a bulky proposition and this restoration would look obvious and out of place. 

Instead, we remove enamel from the existing tooth to make room for the crown before taking an impression. This exposes the softer dentin layer within the tooth, which could decay quickly. The temporary crown covers and protects the prepared tooth while our dental lab manufactures your custom permanent crown from the impression, assuring a perfect fit. 

Benefits of the temporary crown

The temporary crown won’t be a perfect match to the color and shape of your existing teeth like the permanent crown will. However, it provides a range of benefits and advantages over leaving the prepared tooth unprotected. 

Besides keeping the prepared tooth safe, the temporary crown primarily acts as a placeholder so that adjacent teeth don’t shift while you wait for the permanent crown. Even a few days without the full size of the tooth’s enamel could be enough for the teeth on either side to move. This would alter the fit of the permanent crown. 

Changes to your teeth can affect eating and speaking, so the temporary crown maintains a normal feeling. If your tooth is at the front of your mouth, the temporary crown provides more of a normal appearance compared with the prepared tooth, which is filed down and smaller. 

How to take care of your temporary crown

While the temporary crown protects your tooth, it’s not as strong as the permanent version you’ll receive shortly. For the next week or two as you wait for your placement appointment, you must alter your routine slightly to help the temporary crown do its job. 

Consider these temporary changes: 

• Continue your normal twice-a-day brushing with a soft-bristled brush and a gentle touch
• Floss gently too, with a sideways motion rather than up and down, which could dislodge the temporary crown
• Watch the temperatures of food and drink, since your crowned tooth may be sensitive to temperature
• Skip chewy, crunchy, or sticky foods that might get caught in your teeth until your permanent crown is in place

Despite your efforts, accidents happen. If your temporary crown loosens, use denture adhesive to hold it in place and contact us as soon as possible for a professional repair. 

You can reach Lee Dental by phone or online to discuss your dental crown needs. Book your visit with us today for complete care throughout the process.