Went to Dentist for a Crown

[easysurfer]

[Mod edit: Moved to Health forum]

When for a dental cleaning, x-rays and exam last Friday. The x-rays shows I needed a crown for one tooth. Upper right tooth.

So, today I went to dentist and got the work down and now have a temporary crown until about 2 weeks when I get the finished crown.

For me, the worse part wasn't the grinding noise needed to prepare for the crown or the discomfort having having to keep my jaw open with slight spasms to let the dentist do his thing.

The worse thing for me was doing an impression on my lower teeth. The texture of the impression material plus the slight odor made me feel like gagging. I compare that (but not as bad) to as if I had a bunch of mayonnaise in my mouth.

I'm hoping the lower impression was good enough as I just couldn't bite down all the way without gagging.

Now makes me think, why is a lower impression needed at all since they did an upper and the crown is on the upper, not lower?

Total cost for crown came out to around $1700. Since I have not dental insurance, I'm going to give my Health Savings Account a hug

 

[aja8888]

Lower impression is done for the bite configuration match up and tooth length.

 

[braumeister]

why is a lower impression needed at all since they did an upper and the crown is on the upper, not lower?

Total cost for crown came out to around $1700. Since I have not dental insurance, I'm going to give my Health Savings Account a hug

They need to check the occlusion (how the upper and lower teeth come together) for a proper bite.

And you did well on the cost. I just got a new crown last month and it was just over $2K.

 

[COcheesehead]

My dentist 3D prints crowns out of porcelain while you sit in the chair. Whole procedure done in about 90 minutes. They digitally film your mouth so no rubber impressions are needed. There are multiple shades to choose from to match your teeth. Cost: $800.
Shop around.

 

[Freedom56]

[Mod edit: Moved to Health forum]


Total cost for crown came out to around $1700. Since I have not dental insurance, I'm going to give my Health Savings Account a hug

If you don't have dental insurance, you should consider joining a dental savings plan. We joined Aetna Vital Savings for $194 per year. A crown costs $2140 with the buildup in our area without insurance. I just had an old crown replaced plus a new one this past Saturday it it cost me $1961 for both crowns. You effectively pay the insurance contracted fee plus the patient co-pay instead of the full dentist fee. You can see if your dentist is participating in any of the plans at this site. You can also see the fees charged by the dentist.

https://www.dentalplans.com/

 

[MRG]

My dentist 3D prints crowns out of porcelain while you sit in the chair. Whole procedure done in about 90 minutes. They digitally film your mouth so no rubber impressions are needed. There are multiple shades to choose from to match your teeth. Cost: $800.
Shop around.

The new owner of our old practice brought in the measurement technology. How nice not having to bite into cold goo. First time a dentist did that he didn't warn me and I spit it across the room. The nitrous may have been part of the problem.

 

[easysurfer]

Lower impression is done for the bite configuration match up and tooth length.

I see that why one may want to match up the bite, thus a lower impression.

But once the upper is done, I don't see how an adjustment can be made to the upper based on the lower impression. No?

In past, during crown fitting time, the dentist puts the new crown on and asks me to bite down. If don't feel right, dentist my do a bit of grinding to make a better fit.

My temp crown fits perfectly at the moment. Hope the final one will fit a good.

 

[aja8888]

I see that why one may want to match up the bite, thus a lower impression.

But once the upper is done, I don't see how an adjustment can be made to the upper based on the lower impression. No?

In past, during crown fitting time, the dentist puts the new crown on and asks me to bite down. If don't feel right, dentist my do a bit of grinding to make a better fit.

My temp crown fits perfectly at the moment. Hope the final one will fit a good.

With all the crowns I have had (several), and three implants, all were ordered with both upper and lower impressions. Maybe the lab that builds the teeth wants both top and bottom to make sure everything is fine.

 

[pacergal]

Not a bad price for the crown.
Previous dentist did the 3D mechanical printing, current one uses the impression goo, but it is not bad, as they don't over fill it, so it doesn't spill out all over.

 

[ivinsfan]

My dentist 3D prints crowns out of porcelain while you sit in the chair. Whole procedure done in about 90 minutes. They digitally film your mouth so no rubber impressions are needed. There are multiple shades to choose from to match your teeth. Cost: $800.
Shop around.

MY SIL got one of these and it broke after 2 years he had a warranty so it was replaced free of charge he elected to have the replacement made at the lab not the office..

 

[COcheesehead]

MY SIL got one of these and it broke after 2 years he had a warranty so it was replaced free of charge he elected to have the replacement made at the lab not the office..

Mine are still going strong. Zero problems.

 

[ivinsfan]

Mine are still going strong. Zero problems.

The dentist did mention to my SIL that they don't have the lifespan of a traditional crown...nice yours are still good.

 

[COcheesehead]

The dentist did mention to my SIL that they don't have the lifespan of a traditional crown...nice yours are still good.

I’ve had supposedly lifetime gold crowns removed and replaced because of issues. So nothing lasts forever.

 

[aaronc879]

If you don't have dental insurance, you should consider joining a dental savings plan. We joined Aetna Vital Savings for $194 per year. A crown costs $2140 with the buildup in our area without insurance. I just had an old crown replaced plus a new one this past Saturday it it cost me $1961 for both crowns. You effectively pay the insurance contracted fee plus the patient co-pay instead of the full dentist fee. You can see if your dentist is participating in any of the plans at this site. You can also see the fees charged by the dentist.

https://www.dentalplans.com/

Wow, $2K for a crown? I had a root canal and crown in 2008 and it was $2K combined and I thought that was too much. I think I will be having my teeth pulled when the time comes rather than spending thousands per tooth.

 

[Freedom56]

Wow, $2K for a crown? I had a root canal and crown in 2008 and it was $2K combined and I thought that was too much. I think I will be having my teeth pulled when the time comes rather than spending thousands per tooth.

If you pull your tooth out, you will lose the bone mass under the tooth. You can see that with people with dentures where their jaws and face start to shrink.

 

[finnski1]

Wow, $2K for a crown? I had a root canal and crown in 2008 and it was $2K combined and I thought that was too much. I think I will be having my teeth pulled when the time comes rather than spending thousands per tooth.

Yeah crowns around here (NH) are $2k or more.

 

[athena53]

I think I will be having my teeth pulled when the time comes rather than spending thousands per tooth.

If you pull your tooth out, you will lose the bone mass under the tooth. You can see that with people with dentures where their jaws and face start to shrink.

That's what I'd read- that your jawbone keeps shrinking away and you need new dentures every few years- but they become harder and harder to fit. I've been around people with ill-fitting dentures- they slip and make clacking noises when the person is talking. A friend used to go through 2 tubes of Poli-Grip a week. I also suspect 90% of my diet (vegetables that are either fresh or lightly cooked) would be out.

I'll do just about anything to avoid that scenario.

 

[Scuba]

There’s always Los Algodones.

 

[RetiredAndLovingIt]

Loma Linda University Dental School charges $467 for the crown plus $102 for core build up if needed. I got three done last year and they look good.
I think they were all done with a digital impression but they also took rubber impressions if I remember correctly.

 

[COcheesehead]

I think the most I ever paid for a crown was $1300 and that was for a custom color match (hand died) front tooth.

 

[Texas Proud]

My crown with xrays and build up was just under $1900 after cash discount...


But, the dentist said I needed a root canal that he could not do... so go to a specialist and spend just under $1600 after senior discount...


Still have temp on as it was done last week...

 

[Bamaman]

My dentist 3D prints crowns out of porcelain while you sit in the chair. Whole procedure done in about 90 minutes. They digitally film your mouth so no rubber impressions are needed. There are multiple shades to choose from to match your teeth. Cost: $800.
Shop around.

I've noticed the price of crowns to be all over the place--depending on how high the cost of living is in your region. I'm fortunate to live in the low cost South.

Our dentists were charging about $800 for crowns, but I think they've gone up another $100 recently. Root canals have also gone from $800 to $1000 recently--cash only.

My dentist also has the rig that scans the mouth and carves the porcelain crown on a tabletop CNC machine in 6 minutes. She scarcely has to make adjustments to the crown. Total time in the chair was 1 hour, and the cost was $750.

It sure beats paying $150 more and having to spend 2 hours over 2 weeks waiting for the crown to come out of a dental lab. Feels and fits better too.

 

[misanman]

the rig that scans the mouth and carves the porcelain crown on a tabletop CNC machine in 6 minutes

I asked my dentist about this and she said she does pretty well replacing these when they fail prematurely. I suppose this could be "sour grapes" because she doesn't have one but she claims the lab-made crowns are much more durable. YMMV.

 

[Cayman]

My dentist has a newer 3D, he says lab crowns are definitely more durable.

Said he isn't aware of any 3D that creates crowns that are as durable as lab created.

He charges the same for both types. Total cost $1610 with build up.

 

[wrigley]

Wow, $2K for a crown? I had a root canal and crown in 2008 and it was $2K combined and I thought that was too much. I think I will be having my teeth pulled when the time comes rather than spending thousands per tooth.

Don't ever have a tooth pulled because your don't want to pay for a crown. If you live long enough you'll regret your decision.

Mike