3 Reasons Why Dental Crowns Need To Be Replaced

Dental crowns are an easy way for dentists to fix the look or function of your teeth. These caps fit over top of your existing teeth and can fix teeth that are damaged, decayed, or even discolored. Crowns can last for as long as 10 years if you're careful with them, but eventually, most crowns will need to be replaced. Here are three reasons why you will eventually need to get new crowns.

You don't brush well enough

Crowns can't get cavities, but that doesn't mean that you don't need to brush them thoroughly. Plaque can accumulate around the bottom edges of the crowns, and if you don't remove this plaque, your natural teeth are in danger of decay. Cavities can form on your natural teeth along the edge of the crowns, and will eventually spread underneath the crowns. This severely weakens your teeth, which can cause your crowns to detach from the teeth underneath. Even if the crowns don't fail on their own, your dentist will need to remove them to be able to access the decay underneath. Once the decay is fixed, the dentist will place new crowns. 

You can prevent this by paying special attention to the area around your crown when you brush and floss your teeth. It's also very important that you see your dentist regularly for professional cleaning. 

You clench and grind your teeth

Crowns are made of strong materials, but they're not any stronger than your natural teeth. Just like your natural teeth, your crowns can be chipped, cracked, or damaged if you clench or grind your teeth. The biting surface of the crowns may wear away, and over time, you can even develop a hole in the biting surface of the crowns. This hole allows plaque and bacteria to get inside the crowns, so your crowns will need to be replaced. 

A normal bite force has been measured at about 68 pounds per square inch, and both your natural teeth and your crowns are well equipped to handle that. However, the bite force of clenching and grinding has been measured at about 1200 pounds per square inch! Your crowns don't stand a chance against that kind of force.

Your crowns don't look good anymore

Even if you're taking good care of your crowns, years of eating, drinking, and tooth brushing will eventually take their toll, and your crowns won't look as nice as they did when they were new. Crowns that are made of some types of materials, such as composite, stain easily and can't be whitened like natural teeth can. Tooth whitening will reverse the effects of coffee and tea on your natural teeth, but the only way to make your crowns white again is to have them replaced. 

Gum recession can also ruin the appearance of your crowns.If you use a lot of pressure when you brush your teeth, your gums will pull back, so the crowns that used to touch the gums no longer will. A section of natural teeth will be visible between your gum line and your crowns, and the color may not match, which ruins the appearance of the crowns.

Crowns are an excellent way to fix a wide variety of dental problems, but they don't last forever. If you have crowns, you can expect to need to replace them at some point in your life. You can make your crowns last longer by taking good care of them, but even if you're very careful, your crowns will eventually get old and worn out. When this happens, see your dentist as soon as possible to get them replaced. 

Go to websites of local dental clinics to learn more.