One way to tell if a dentist is really passionate about appearance-related dentistry is what kind of crowns they prefer. Dental schools teach doing porcelain fused to metal crowns. But all-porcelain crowns are so much more beautiful and natural-looking, dentists who are passionate about doing beautiful dentistry will be opposed to using porcelain fused to metal crowns for front teeth.
The following pictures of Leann show the differences between porcelain fused to metal crowns and all-porcelain crowns. This work was done by Dr. Sam Sadati, a mynewsmile.com network dentist in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Before
You can see that Leanne’s crowns are drab and opaque. There is also a darkness at the gumline, which is typical of porcelain fused to metal crowns.
Click on the photo to see a close up picture of her smile.
After
Her new smile by Dr. Sadati of West Palm Beach is beautiful and natural-looking.
Click on the photo to see a close up picture of her smile.
Here is another case that was re-done by another one of our network cosmetic dentists.
Before
Before
After
After
Even though all ceramic is the only crown I recommend for front teeth, I do not recommend asking your dentist to do this kind of crown unless the dentist has suggested it as an option. All porcelain crowns generally require special bonding techniques that are unfamiliar to many dentists, and we have heard many unfortunate stories of dentists who thought they could meet the expectations of their patients who requested special cosmetic techniques, but they didn’t know how to do them properly. Click here to read more about why some dentists prefer placing porcelain fused to metal crowns.
This content was written by Dr. David Hall.
Click here to ask Dr. Hall a question.
Related information:
- You may want to check our general page about dental crowns to learn about that.
- Some dentists are proposing placing Lumineers over old crowns rather than replacing them. Dr. Hall explains why this is a bad idea.
- Chanelle asks about a chipped crown. Dr. Hall explains that this chipped crown can be fixed, using special bonding agents and opaquers.
- Various types of all-ceramic or all-porcelain crowns are discussed.
- Comparing porcelain crowns and gold crowns.
- Discussing the costs of porcelain crowns.
- Patients can sometimes have a metal allergy, and need to be careful what alloys are used in their mouths.
Click here for referral to an expert cosmetic dentist.