Crown therapy is designed for damaged, broken, or worn teeth. It is rarely medically necessary, although it can improve function and aesthetics of the teeth. Crowns (veneers) are predominantly fabricated to increase the strength and size of a damaged tooth.
Prosthodontics is a busy discipline in human dentistry. However, it is not nearly as common in veterinary dentistry. Any damaged tooth can be crowned, however the procedure is not routinely performed. The reasons for this are the additional costs associated with the placement of a crown, the added complications arising, and the added anesthetic required to complete the procedure.
One indication for crown therapy is a severely damaged strategic tooth, or one that will likely undergo more damage if left unprotected. A crown can be used to recreate the normal anatomy of a crown that has been chipped, in order to improve function. In working dogs such as guard dogs or police dogs, crowns will protect the canine teeth in order to keep the animal at its maximum potential. Crowns may be placed on vital teeth before they break such as one encounters with enamel hypoplasia or cage biting syndrome.
There are limitations to this kind of treatment: the crown should not be rebuilt to its full height and there must be a minimum amount of anatomical crown remaining to securely cement a crown into place. Rebuilding a crown to full height, increases the amount of leverage that can be placed on it, and increases the chances that the crown will be lost. By the same token, placing a veneer on a short anatomical crown also increases the chance of losing it. Finally, even if the placement is done correctly, this does not guaranty that the tooth will not break further. Some dogs are capable of breaking their teeth through the root, below the veneer.
Police dog with all four canine teeth crowned. Three quarter crown to protect a canine with cage biting wear As far as the type of material used to fabricate the crown, the most common is cast metal, whether a noble alloy or stainless steel. This is the strongest material available that requires the least crown removal. Aesthetic crowns made of porcelain or ceramic are much more common on the human side. In veterinary dentistry, aesthetics is not as important. Good color match is difficult to obtain and these types of crowns are prone to fractures. Even the new materials such as “inceram” and zirconium do crack after a short time. In small patients gold alloy can be used.
Gold alloy crown placed on the mandibular canine of a small dog.