I had a temporary (metal) crown put on a back tooth when I was 25 years old and it is still in place, with no problems, now that I'm 60. I have only been to the dentist a few times in 35 years but they always want to "pop it off and see what's under there". I've never let them.

Today, I had a full set of xrays but, for the first time, the dentist didn't discuss my temporary crown. I'm wondering why not and if I should get the crown changed. Any thoughts appreciated.

He probably didn't mention it because he is tired of telling you about it. Temporary crowns are meant to be just that - temporary. They don't fit perfectly, and they aren't cemented with very strong cement because the dentist needs to be able to get them off. Having said all that, it really depends on what they made the temporary out of, what it was cemented with, and how well it fits around the edges. If it was made out of stainless steel, or a very hard acrylic, fits very well, and was cemented with a strong cement, it it probably okay, but your dentist can't know until he takes it off and looks underneath.

Usually, A temporary allows some "leakage", meaning that bacteria can seep under the crown because it doesn't fit perfectly. If the bacteria get under the temp, they have a perfect home to breed, multiply, and eat away your tooth.

Temps are usually supposed to last a few weeks to a few months. I saw a temp that had lasted a few years, but when the dentist took off the temp, there was almost nothing underneath. The tooth had to be extracted.

If the dentist takes it off, he will need to put on a permanent crown, and that will have a fee associated with it, probably around $1000. But the permanent crown will be custom made to your tooth, fit much better, be stronger, and have permanent cement.

But in the end, it is your decision. They are after all, your teeth.

If it ain't broke don't fix it. Its been there 35 years - and no abcess, pain or discomfort? Its not loose, is not bothering you in any way? X-rays don't show anything going on? No bad taste if you floss around it? Its appearance is OK - it still sits correctly around the tooth, no cracks, or gaps near the gum line? Your bite is still comfortable? Why play around with it now? It might be better to just leave it alone.

My dentist insisted that I have my bottom molars crowned due to large fillings despite the fact they did not bother me at all - guess what - then they all needed root canals and the crowns never fit or felt like my old teeth - they just looked better. Then the dentist told me all the problems I was having with them were b/c the teeth were bad, I had a cross bite, I had tmj problems, etc. - well they weren't bothering me before he did what he insisted was the best thing to do. He made me feel guilty of neglecting them to get me to do what he wanted and then made me feel guilty again when I complained about them. I would take my old molars back with the large black fillings in them any day. I wish I had listened to my mother's advice back then - if it ain't broken don't fix it.

I would leave that crown alone unless it starts showing signs of a problem.

Each time of the four or five times I've seen a dentist has been a one time situation so nobody was tired of telling me anything, Buddee.

T-L, thanks for your common sense approach. There is no sign of problems in the area of my cap so I agree it makes sense to leave well enough alone.

I worked in a dentist's office once (for one week before I quit) and the whole emphasis was money, money, money. The staff and dentist sat around laughing about the people with good dental plans and all the expensive work they "needed". It was really disgusting.

Njoy, you give me hope. I've had a temp crown for over 3 years. The dentist doesn't want to do the permanent because I developed major tmj problems when I had that tooth root canaled. He doesn't want to touch it until the tmj is under control and so far noone has been able to get control of the situation. I was wondering how long this temp would hold up and I can only hope for it to be half as long as yours. I totally agree with TL, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

BTW - temp crowns aren't usually made of metal - they are generally made of some type of acryllic or bonding material. Maybe you have a permanent crown that was cemented on with temp cement and the cement lasted longer than expected. Sometimes with temp cement they put vasoline in it so the crown can be easily pooped off - maybe they didn't do this and that's why it lasted so long. I wish you continued good luck with it.

Good luck to you guys. I wish you the best. I'm sorry if I offended you njoy.

I also agree that if it ain't broke, don't fix it, My point in my post was just that with temps, you don't really know if its broke because you can't see underneath it. And things can develop slow enough that you wouldn't notice problems until it was too late to do much with the tooth. Usually people don't take notice of a problem unless it happens rapidly, causes pain, or causes something else nearby to change. But if you've had it that long, why not. Go for it. Let us know what happens. Like I said before, if it was made well, fits well, and was cemented well, you are probably okay.

I think maybe you just had a real good dentist years ago and he put the temp on to stay until you could get it replaced. I agree if its not causing any probs leave it alone.

I think maybe you just had a real good dentist years ago and he put the temp on to stay until you could get it replaced. I agree if its not causing any probs leave it alone.

Don't play around with something that doesn't hurt. If it gives you problems then address it. After these last two weeks and what I went through, I don't want to touch anything if it not painful.