I got a CEREC crown and now, a few months later, I have a massive tooth infection on the tooth under the crown. I feel like the crown caused the infection. Have you noticed this to be common with CEREC crowns?

Alonso G. – New Mexico

Alonso,

No, that isn’t an issue with your crown. It is more likely a dentist issue. There are a few possibilities going on. With the first, your dentist didn’t remove all of the infection to begin with. It’s possible he thought the infecion was dealt with, but there was some left. If the  infection isn’t dug out of there, it will continue to spread.

Another option is your tooth developed new decay. That can happen a couple of ways.  There is a learning curve with CEREC crowns. Some dentists are more skilled than others. It’s possible your dentist left some gaps in the margins or there were some other issues  with his bonding that left your tooth vulnerable to decay.

It’s also possible that you’ve had a harder time with your oral hygiene. It isn’t easy getting crowns all the way clean and flossing is more of a challenge than it used to be.

You’ll need to have your dentist look at this right away and make sure he gets all the infection. When completed, you might want to make sure there are no gaps anywhere, in case the problem is your dentist.

This blog is brought to you by Louisiana Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Mike Malone.