Dental crowns are the same things as dental caps. A crown is a more technical definition, while cap seems to be more of a layman’s term.
Crowns must duplicate nature’s design of whatever tooth is being crowned.
Each tooth in the mouth has certain individual characteristics, based on where it is located in the mouth and its function. Dentists study and have to be able to identify each unique tooth. If you were to bring a tooth to the dentist, he could tell you exactly which tooth it was and where it was located in a mouth as long as it is not too damaged.
Back teeth are designed to crack foods and chew. They can withstand heavy bite loads and take the most stress in the mouth. They all have 2 to 4 roots and large crowns.
The bicuspid teeth are next going forward. They are good for shredding foods.
The next tooth is the canine or cuspid. Meat eating animals have long sharp canine teeth that grab, hold and kills prey. The canine teeth are the cornerstones of tooth alignment and also protect the back teeth when chewing. This helps prevent sideways forces on the back teeth and helps prevent breakage.
Humans use front teeth, the incisors, for smiling but also cutting off and biting foods. They are not designed for a lot of force.
An interesting fact is that the upper front teeth follow nature’s design. In dentistry it is called the golden proportion and the golden proportion is prominent throughout nature.
A crown is made outside the mouth. There are many methods. One new one utilizes CAD CAM technology with which crowns are made with very sophisticated computers and 3 D milling machines. They can duplicate Mother Nature’s design for your mouth.
In contrast, a filling is done directly in the mouth. If one’s decay is small, today’s filling materials are appropriate for repairing the tooth after the decay has been removed. If the damage is large, it is very difficult to restore the size and shape of the tooth. Fillings are for small damage. Crowns are for teeth with a lot of damage or teeth that are cracked or worn down.
Crowns can rebuild broken down teeth, but they can also rebuild a broken-down mouth. See photos below which show a destroyed dentition and one that has been restored to a natural, functioning smile. Modern dental technology is exciting.
Now you should have a better understanding of why your dentist would recommend a crown for your tooth.
