What Is Dental Crown Lengthening?

While dentists normally add crowns, or dental restorations, to teeth that need extra shape or mass, this is a relatively simple procedure. In some cases, the dentist needs to perform a crown lengthening in order to complete the process.

Reasons For Crowns

• Although a dentist would recommend a patient get a crown for many reasons, they generally fall into one of three categories. The tooth could be weakening over time and needs reinforcement; it could have lost its original shape, perhaps because of an injury, and the dentist will restore it back; and some people choose to have a crown added for cosmetic reasons.

Reason For Crown Lengthening

• When someone needs or wants a crown but there isn't enough tooth surface area to accommodate it, a dentist or periodontist will recommend a crown lengthening. This procedure will provide the dentist with more tooth to use for the crown.

Crown Lengthening Procedure

• The dentist will cut away a portion of your gums surrounding the tooth in question to expose more of the actual tooth that is laying beneath. It can also include removing a portion of the bone as necessary to accommodate the shape and size of the crown. All of this is done under local anesthesia and can be performed on the same day.

Post-Procedure

• After the dentist has cut the flaps surrounding the tooth, he will suture them down, exposing more of your tooth. Since this area will be extremely sore and raw, he will advise you to eat soft foods for several days after and take extremely good care of the area. You will return to the dentist for a follow-up about a week later, at which time he may add a crown.