Do I Need a Crown?

Aswerty

Hey,

I got some fillings done 6 months back and one of them was for a particularly deep cavity. The dentist said there was a decent chance a root canal would have to be done on the tooth that had the deep cavity. Fast forward to today where I have just gotten the root canal because the tooth became sore and the detist said the nerve ending died.

The thing is I assumed I would need a crown but the dentist said that I didn't because some times a crown is not needed. Now I have a check up with him in a week to ensure there is no problems and am just doing some research on whether I need a crown. The tooth with the root canal is a premolar and I'm guessing wasn't in terrible nick since the dentist had thought I might not need the root canal.

So I'm just checking to see if not getting a crown can be a correct decision in certain cases. I don't want to end up with problems because I didn't get one.

I hope I'm not breaking some forum rule of trying to unavoid dental work

btkm8unsl0w5r4

All back teeth (premolars and molar) should ideally have a crown after root canal work, this is true regardless of the size of the previous filling. A root treated tooth is hollow and much more prone to fracture than a normal tooth with a regular filling. Your chance of the tooth still being in your head in 7 years is only 30% without a crown or other full coverage restorations.

Now you can get away without one, but your playing the odds. Maybe the dentist doesn't want to hit you with another big bill after the root canal, but IMHO a crown is really the best thing. I have found premolars to be the worst offenders for unrestorable fractures after root canal treatment.

Oral Surgeon

Most dentists (and all endodontists!!) would agree that a crown is indicated for a root canal treated tooth in most cases

If a front tooth needed a root canal because it got a bang but there was no fracture of tooth or previous decay or filling- most likely a crown is not needed.

In your case, however, you had a large filling/ cavity. On a premolar, these cavities tend to include 2 or 3 surfaces of the tooth. This coupled with the inevitable preparation for the root canal causes a weakening of the tooth crown walls (on the cheek or palate side) and given time may fracture off... If this fractures, it may be difficult or impossible to then crown or fix the tooth as the fracture line may run too far below the gum line or may even crack the tooth root in half...

In short, 2 reasons for a crown post root canal;
to strengthen the tooth
to seal the crown part of the root canal from getting re infected...

Despite what some people may think, some dentists are thinking of your pocket and may suggest putting off the crown for now to lessen the financial blow but if you are in a position to have the crown now- I would..

Good luck,
OS

Aswerty

Cheers for the rapid responses guys. I can cover the cost of the crown at the moment and will definitely talk to my dentist about it, especially now that I have a bit better an understanding of the need for one.