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All Ceramic
- All ceramic for the profession
- All ceramic cases
- All ceramic for the patient
- This is how they differ from metal ceramic
- Your dentist may recommend all ceramic because........
All ceramic for the profession
Whether you want a anterior or posterior crown or bridge we have a system that will provide the best all ceramic restoration for your patients.
We offer the very best in Zirconium (1100MPa) restorations, we believe that the Lava system from 3M is currently the best for fit and strength. We now have the Lava design system so that we can design our own frameworks to optimise the support for the Lavaceram porcelain.If you would like further information on Lava Zirconia please click on the link for our document on Lava Zirconia Scientific Facts »
We also provide WolCeram (600Mpa) restorations. The WolCeram uses electophereise to create a dense alumina core for crowns and bridges. These are less expensive than zirconium as we make them inhouse without cad/cam or milling
technology.
Dentine bonded crowns (100MPa) allow for reduced preparation and increased translucency for the difficult aesthetic case. These are layered on platinum foil with no core.
Pressed ceramic crowns offer increased strength (140 Mpa) from a DBC but a core of 0.6mm is required onto which we can layer translucent and effect powders.
All ceramic for the patient
The Lava and WolCeram allceramic restorations have a core material that is semi translucent, this creates far fewer problems for the ceramic layer that covers them than would be the case for a metal ceramic crown.
All ceramic cores offer a variety of strengths and thickness, this will influence the choice of material for a particular tooth. All are extremely bio-compatible and when bonded to the tooth have outstanding aesthetics.
Dentine bonded crowns and pressed crowns have no core material giving them the best potential for aesthetic restorations.
- Lava (zirconium) restorations are quite expensive at the moment but as with all technologies, the price for the CAD/CAM and milling will fall. The cores are very strong but the veneering ceramic is not as strong as those used for metal ceramic.
- WolCeram (alumina) restorations have thicker cores than zirconium and the lower strength means that they can be used for any crown but not molar bridges.
- Pressed ceramic and Dentine bonded crowns have a similar strength to natural enamel and their success depends on the quality of the bond achieved between the crown and underlying tooth. They have no core material so they have the best possibility of giving a greater aesthetic result.
Your dentist may recommend an all ceramic crown because:
- You are allergic to some metals or are concerned about biocompatability.
- You are having a front tooth made and you want the best aesthetics possible.
- You currently have no metal restorations. Some patients experience a galvanic reaction between metal and saliva acids which can cause localised damage the gums.
The points made here are generalisations. Teeth and mouths are extremely complex systems which your dentist is in the best position to assess. If you are unhappy with what your dentist has recommended, ask them if there is an alternative treatment and what the compromises may be if an alternative is persuade.
