Dr. John D. Barnes
256-539-7000
drjdbarnes@aol.com
Dental Conditions
Crowns
We don't want crowns on our child's teeth. Can't his problems be solved with fillings?
Deciding whether a crown is the optimum treatment depends on several factors: the age of your child, the size of the cavity, and how much of the tooth is decayed.
Let's consider age. Since most of the baby teeth in the back of a child's mouth will remain until they are ten to thirteen years old, it is important to restore a decayed tooth with materials that are durable. A cavity in a nine-year-old might be treated with a filling, while the same cavity in a three-year-old is best handled with a crown.
The choice also depends on the likelihood of future decay in the treated tooth. Placing a crown may be the best way to avoid re-treatment in the future.
Size of the cavity is another factor. When a cavity becomes so large that there's not enough of the tooth left to hold the filling a place, then a crown is the best option.