What is a Dental Crown?

Materials for Dental Crowns: Crowns are made from various materials, each suited to different needs. Options include metal crowns, ceramic crowns, and porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns, each offering specific benefits in terms of durability, appearance, and compatibility with natural teeth. Dental crowns are a reliable solution for restoring both function and aesthetics to damaged or weakened teeth, ensuring long-lasting results.​

Dental crowns are custom-designed, tooth-shaped caps placed on damaged, weakened, or decayed teeth to restore strength, function, and appearance. These crowns ensure a comfortable bite and natural fit, functioning as effectively as natural teeth. Typically crafted from durable ceramic or metal materials, dental crowns are known for their longevity and resilience.

A crown is used to entirely cover or "cap" a damaged tooth.
Besides strengthening a damaged tooth, a crown can be used to improve its appearance, shape, or alignment. 

​A crown can also be placed on top of a dental implant to provide a tooth-like shape and structure for function. Usually, when one talks about getting a dental implant, they mean that they are getting a dental implant with a crown.

Dental bridges work similarly but are designed to cover a gap between two teeth. A bridge consists of two crowns on the teeth adjacent to the gap, with a prosthetic tooth suspended between them to fill the space. Bridges are ideal for patients who want to avoid surgery or dental implants, offering a non-invasive alternative for tooth replacement.

When To Get A Dental Crown Or Bridge?

The most common reason for needing a dental crown or veneer is to restore and protect a weakened tooth, which may result from dental cavities, fractures, or wear.

Crowns are also an excellent solution for improving the appearance of worn, misshapen, or discoloured teeth, achieving a natural and aesthetically pleasing shape.

Teeth That May Benefit from Crowns:
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• Teeth with Large Fillings, Decay, or Cavities: Crowns provide additional strength and protection to teeth compromised by extensive decay or large restorations.
  
• Cracked or Chipped Teeth: A crown helps stabilise these teeth, preventing further damage and maintaining functionality.
• Teeth Treated with Root Canal Therapy: After a root canal, crowns protect the treated tooth from cracking or breaking, ensuring long-term durability.
• Oddly Shaped or Discoloured Teeth: Crowns can correct shape or colour discrepancies, blending the treated tooth seamlessly with its neighbours.

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What Happens When A Dental Crown Is Placed?

You need either an implant fixture or your tooth, reshaped to fit the replacement crown.

If you are suffering from tooth decay or pulpitis, our dentist will remove damaged and infected tissue from the tooth before cleaning and disinfecting the tooth. He / She will then prepare the tooth by filing away a thin layer of enamel to create space for the crown to fit between adjacent teeth.

Next, our dentist will take an impression of the prepared tooth and send it to our dental lab, where it acts as a template for the fabrication of a dental crown. You will get a temporary crown which will be replaced with your custom crown when it is ready, and you would have to come to Tooth Angels again for a second procedure to attach your customised dental crown. 
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How a dental crown is placed - Step by step pictorial.

Process Of Getting A Crown At Tooth Angels Dental Surgeons

• Consultation
• Preparation
• Designing Of Crown
• Hand Finishing Your Crown
• Crown Cementation

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During your consultation, we will thoroughly evaluate the condition of your tooth, including the extent of any damage, the health of the nerve, and the overall suitability of your tooth for a crown. This detailed assessment ensures the most effective and appropriate treatment plan.
X-rays may be taken to identify underlying dental issues that may not be visible during a clinical examination. These images also help us better understand your concerns and provide a comprehensive analysis of your dental health.
If any anomalies or complications are identified during the consultation, our dentists will discuss alternative treatment options tailored to your needs, ensuring you receive the best possible care for your dental health and aesthetics.

The dentist will first remove any decay from the tooth and restore it with a filling if necessary. This step ensures a healthy base for the crown and prepares the tooth for further treatment.

Next, the tooth will be reshaped to create adequate space for the crown. This involves removing a thin layer of the tooth, a necessary but irreversible step to ensure a proper fit for the crown.
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A digital dental impression of your teeth and bite will then be taken using an intraoral scanner. This precise scan is sent to our partnered dental laboratory, where your crown will be custom-designed and fabricated. 

CAD/CAM (Computer-Aided Design/Computer-Aided Manufacturing) technology plays a crucial role in the precise design and fabrication of dental crowns.

This advanced approach ensures a high level of accuracy, efficiency, and customisation for each patient.

The process begins with specialised software that allows the dental technician to create a virtual 3D model of the tooth. This model is meticulously adjusted for shape, size, and bite alignment, ensuring a perfect fit and natural aesthetics.

​Once the design is finalised, the CAD software communicates with a milling machine (CAM), which fabricates the crown from a durable material such as ceramic or zirconia. This seamless integration of design and manufacturing results in a customised crown that fits comfortably, functions effectively, and blends naturally with your teeth.

​In our partnered dental laboratory, each full-metal crown is meticulously milled from a single block of high-quality material using diamond drills. This precision ensures an accurate fit tailored to your specific dental needs.

Experienced dental technicians then hand-finish the crowns, adding detailed glazes for a realistic, natural appearance. These finishing touches ensure that the crown blends seamlessly with your surrounding teeth for optimal aesthetics.
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Finally, the ceramic crown is strengthened and the glazes made permanent by firing it in a specialised furnace at 1550°C. This process enhances the crown’s durability, ensuring long-lasting performance and a lifelike appearance.

In the final step, you'll return to Tooth Angels Dental Surgeons for the placement of your crown.

The dentist will first try on the metal crown to ensure it fits properly and checks that it blends seamlessly with your surrounding teeth in both function and appearance.

​If everything is satisfactory, the crown will be thoroughly cleaned and conditioned to prepare it for placement. It will then be permanently cemented onto your tooth, restoring its strength, functionality, and aesthetics.

Types Of Dental Crowns Available In Singapore

• Ceramic Crowns
• Zirconia Crowns
• PFM Crowns
• Full Metal Crowns

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​Ceramic crowns are highly valued for their natural appearance, closely mimicking the colour and translucency of natural teeth. This makes them an excellent choice for front teeth or those visible in the smile line.

Crafted from porcelain, ceramic crowns offer a balance of strength, durability, and aesthetics. They seamlessly blend with surrounding teeth, providing a restoration that looks and feels natural while maintaining functionality.

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​Zirconia crowns are renowned for their exceptional strength, durability, and longevity. Crafted from zirconium oxide, a highly durable ceramic material, these crowns are resistant to wear and fractures, making them an ideal choice for long-lasting dental restorations.

In addition to their durability, zirconia crowns offer superior aesthetics. They provide a natural look and feel, blending seamlessly with surrounding teeth. This versatility makes them suitable for both front teeth, where appearance is crucial, and back teeth, where strength and resilience are essential.

​Porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM) crowns combine the durability of a metal base with the aesthetic appeal of a porcelain exterior. This design ensures added strength and resilience while maintaining a natural tooth-like appearance.

PFM crowns are highly versatile, making them suitable for both front teeth, where aesthetics are important, and back teeth, where strength and durability are essential. With their reliable performance and natural-looking finish, PFM crowns offer a balance of function and appearance for a confident smile.

Full metal crowns, commonly made from metal alloys such as gold, palladium, or nickel-chromium, are renowned for their exceptional strength and longevity. Their durable composition makes them highly resistant to wear, ensuring reliable performance over time.

​These crowns are often recommended for back teeth, where biting and chewing forces are strongest. Full metal crowns provide long-lasting protection and functionality, making them an excellent choice for preserving the structural integrity of molars while withstanding heavy use.

Benefits Of Getting A Dental Crown

Restored Functionality: Crowns improve chewing and speaking abilities, especially if teeth are missing.

Enhanced Aesthetics: They restore the natural appearance of the smile, boosting confidence and self-esteem.

Preserves Natural Teeth: Crowns protect weakened or damaged teeth from further deterioration.

Prevents Shifting of Teeth: Bridges fill gaps, preventing adjacent teeth from moving out of place.
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Durable and Long-lasting: When properly cared for, crowns and bridges can last for many years.

Customizable: They can be tailored to match the color, shape, and size of natural teeth for a seamless blend.

Maintains Facial Structure: They help preserve the shape and structure of the face, preventing a sunken appearance.

Comfortable Fit: Modern crowns and bridges are designed for optimal comfort, reducing irritation and discomfort.

Improved Oral Health: They promote proper oral hygiene by filling gaps and preventing food particles from getting stuck.

​Efficient and Time-saving: The process of getting a crown or bridge is relatively quick and straightforward, providing an efficient solution for tooth restoration.

Dental Crowns Warranty, Price And Subsidies

Crown and Warranty *
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• 3 years warranty applies if, under normal conditions, the dental restoration breaks, loosens, cracks or dislodges.
• Replacement with a similar or better material is covered
• It does not cover the treatment cost of root canal treatments (if needed thereafter) nor the breakage/fracture of the natural tooth supporting it.
• The warranty does not cover in cases whereby the dentist has advised the patient before that the restoration may not last due to tooth/gum/bite factors.

Price For Dental Crowns 

Dental Crowns from $763.00 onwards with GST of 9%.

Subsidies For Dental Crowns

Dental Crown
​Depending on your eligibility, you may receive subsidies for certain dental services in Singapore. This includes permanent crowns. These are the subsidies available and the claimable amount per year:

CHAS Orange card:
$84.50

CHAS Blue card:
$127.50

Merdeka Generation card:
$132.50

Pioneer Generation card:
$137.50

You may claim for up to 4 permanent crowns per calendar year.