In dentistry, crown refers to the anatomical area of teeth, usually covered by enamel. The crown is usually visible in the mouth after developing below the gingiva and then erupting into place. If part of the tooth gets chipped or broken, a dentist can apply an artificial crown. Crowns are used most commonly to entirely cover a damaged tooth or cover an implant. Bridges are also used to cover a space if one or more teeth is missing. They are cemented to natural teeth or implants surrounding the space where the tooth once stood. There are various materials that can be used including a type of cement or stainless steel. The cement crowns look like regular teeth while the stainless steel crowns are silver or gold.

Types of Dental Crowns

Permanent crowns can be made out of many different materials. These materials can include:

• Metal: There are several metals that can be used in dental crowns, including gold, palladium, nickel and chromium. Metal crowns rarely chip or break, last the longest in terms of wear down and only require a small amount of your tooth to be removed. They can also withstand biting and chewing forces. The metallic color is the main drawback of this type of crown. Metal crowns are a good choice for out-of-sight molars.


• Porcelain-fused-to-metal: This type of dental crown can be matched to the color of the teeth that’s next to the crown. They have a more natural tooth color. However, sometimes the metal under the crown’s porcelain cap shows through as a dark line. Other cons include the chance of the crown’s porcelain portion chipping or breaking off and the crown wearing down the teeth opposite it within the mouth. This wear on the other teeth specifically affects the teeth that come into contact with the crown on the top and bottom of your mouth when it’s closed. Porcelain-fused-to-metal dental crowns can be a good choice for front or back teeth.


• All-resin: Dental crowns made out of resin are generally less expensive than other crown types. However, they wear down over time and are more likely to break than porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns.

All-ceramic or all-porcelain or Zirconia Crowns: These types of dental crowns provide the best natural color match compared to any other crown type. They’re also a good choice if you have metal allergies. However, they aren’t as strong as porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns. They can also wear down the teeth opposite them in the mouth a little more than metal or resin crowns. All-ceramic crowns are a good choice for front teeth.

A bridge is a fixed dental restoration (a fixed dental prosthesis) used to replace one or more missing teeth by joining an artificial tooth definitively to adjacent teeth or dental implants.

Conventional bridge :- High Translucent zirconium fixed - fixed bridge built with VM9 vita porcelain and stained with luster paste. The upper first premolar is considered the pontic and the teeth prepared are abutments. Conventional bridges are bridges that are supported by full coverage crowns, three-quarter crowns, post-retained crowns, onlays and inlays on the abutment teeth. In these types of bridges, the abutment teeth require preparation and reduction to support the prosthesis. Conventional bridges are named depending on the way the pontic (false teeth) is attached to the retainer.

Fixed-fixed bridges :- A fixed-fixed bridge refers to a pontic which is attached to a retainer at both sides of the space with only one path of insertion. This type of design has a rigid connector at each end which connects the abutment to the pontic. As the abutments are connected together rigidly it is critical that during tooth preparation the proximal surfaces of the abutment teeth must be prepared so that they are parallel to each other.

Cantilever :- A cantilever is a bridge where a pontic is attached to a retainer only at one side. The abutment tooth may be mesial or distal to the pontic. In a spring cantilever, the pontic and retainer are remote from each other and connected by a metal bar. Usually, a missing anterior tooth is replaced and supported by a posterior tooth. This design of bridge has been superseded.

Fixed-movable :- The pontic is firmly attached to a retainer at one end of the span (major retainer) and attached via a movable joint at the other end (minor retainer). A major advantage of this type of bridge is that the movable joint can accommodate the angulation differences in the abutment teeth in long axis, which enables the path of insertion to be irrespective of the alignment of the abutment tooth. This enables a more conservative approach as the abutments do not need to be prepared so that are parallel to one and other. Ideally the rigid connector should attach the pontic to the more distal abutment. The movable connector attaches the pontic to the mesial abutment, enabling this abutment tooth limited movement in a vertical direction.

Adhesive bridge :- An alternative to the traditional bridge is the adhesive bridge (also called a Maryland bridge). An adhesive bridge utilises "wings" on the sides of the pontic which attach it to the abutment teeth. Abutment teeth require minor or no preparation. They are most often used when the abutment teeth are whole and sound (i.e., no crowns or major fillings).

Combination Designs :- The incorporation of elements of different conventional bridge designs. A popular combination design is the use of a fixed-fixed design with a cantilever.

Hybrid Designs :- Bridges that incorporate elements of both conventional and adhesive bridge designs.