I'm trying to get the right color and right fit for 4 crowns on my upper, four front teeth. I've been wearing crowns with temporary cement. We're now at the second attempt. The first set of crowns were comfortable, but they were too yellow. The dentist took impressions and sent them back to the lab and told the lab to mimick the size but whiten. The crowns came back with a better color, but the lab didn't mimick the size and made the crowns too long in front. The dentist filed the crowns shorter. I've told the dentist the crowns are uncomfortable, they feel thicker in front and one crown hurts and keeps coming off. The temporary and the yellow crown stayed on with no problem. The dentist said they are the same crown because the lab used the same core. He measured the crowns and said they're the same size around as when they were yellow. Is it possible that because the lab made the crowns too long in front that it added the thickness to the front to compensate the length in front, and made them less thick in back? And, why would one crown hurt now when the temporary and the yellow crown didn't hurt?

I had similar problems in the past but have no answer for you. Hopefully you will not accept the ill-fitting crowns - please don't let the dentist browbeat you into thinking they are the same or you will get used to it, etc. b/c if it does not feel right now it never will - I made that mistake already. Either let him redo it again or - if the lab is close to where you live, make an appt to see the lab technician who made the crown and discuss the problem with him. Crowns should not hurt - if they do it could be b/c the abutment is not correct, the thickness or bulk of the crown interferes with other teeth or your tongue, etc. Aslo, sometimes cement can get wedged between the abutment and the gum tissue which can prevent the crown from seating correctly - which can also cause pain.

I'm trying to get the right color and right fit for 4 crowns on my upper, four front teeth. I've been wearing crowns with temporary cement. We're now at the second attempt. The first set of crowns were comfortable, but they were too yellow. The dentist took impressions and sent them back to the lab and told the lab to mimick the size but whiten. The crowns came back with a better color, but the lab didn't mimick the size and made the crowns too long in front. The dentist filed the crowns shorter. I've told the dentist the crowns are uncomfortable, they feel thicker in front and one crown hurts and keeps coming off. The temporary and the yellow crown stayed on with no problem. The dentist said they are the same crown because the lab used the same core. He measured the crowns and said they're the same size around as when they were yellow. Is it possible that because the lab made the crowns too long in front that it added the thickness to the front to compensate the length in front, and made them less thick in back? And, why would one crown hurt now when the temporary and the yellow crown didn't hurt?

Thelma-Louise:

Thank you for your input. I went to the dentist yesterday because I had to have him take off the one crown. It hurt so bad. I was hurting up in my sinus and from the crown to my ear. The dentist had the lab guy come to his office. The lab guy said he doesn't know why the crown would be hurting me. The lab guy took the crowns back to the lab to file some of the thickness from the fronts. The dentist put my temporaries back on and made me an appointment with an endodontist to see if I need a root canal. By yesterday evening, I was already feeling better. I went to see the dentist today because my crowns were back from the lab. I asked the dentist why the crown would hurt and not the temporary. He said he didn't know. I was a little hesitant, but we put the crowns back on (temporary cement). I did ask the dentist to file the one crown on the sides a bit because it did feel a little tight. The temporary was not tight between the teeth and I thought maybe that could make a difference. I'm wearing the crowns right now and so far it doesn't hurt any worse than this morning. I'm thinking if that was the problem, it's still going to take a little time for me to heal completely. If it starts hurting, I will not accept the crown. I will ask for another impression of that tooth and have the lab completely make a new crown. My biggest fear is that if this crown feels fine and doesn't hurt again, that when it's put on with permanent cement if it's not placed on my tooth exactly right that I will be in pain eventually and it would have to be cut off.

That is exactly what happened to me. A crown on an upper canine was temporarily cemented in and it seemed fine. After one week the dr replaced the temp cement with perm cement and the problems (pain, throbbing, etc) started immediately afterwards. He then refused to remove the crown despite my pleading and evenutally I developed muscle fatigue from the chronic pain which I feel eventually led to muscular tmj. In hindsight I should have just gone to another dentist to have it replaced . I would suggest you ask the dentist to give you a good month or 2 using the temp cement - with the agreement that should it come loose you will go promptly in and have it recemented on and will take care not to chomp too hard on it for a while. I have had other crowns done this way since and it worked quite well. Actually one bridge I had was with temp cement for more than 4 yrs - the dentist said it lasted so long b/c the bridge had a great fit to begin with, meaning that no debris was able to get beneath the crown's abutment so the cement was never disturbed and remained secure.

Good Luck - I hope you have no further problems with it.

Thelma-Louise:

Thank you for your input. I went to the dentist yesterday because I had to have him take off the one crown. It hurt so bad. I was hurting up in my sinus and from the crown to my ear. The dentist had the lab guy come to his office. The lab guy said he doesn't know why the crown would be hurting me. The lab guy took the crowns back to the lab to file some of the thickness from the fronts. The dentist put my temporaries back on and made me an appointment with an endodontist to see if I need a root canal. By yesterday evening, I was already feeling better. I went to see the dentist today because my crowns were back from the lab. I asked the dentist why the crown would hurt and not the temporary. He said he didn't know. I was a little hesitant, but we put the crowns back on (temporary cement). I did ask the dentist to file the one crown on the sides a bit because it did feel a little tight. The temporary was not tight between the teeth and I thought maybe that could make a difference. I'm wearing the crowns right now and so far it doesn't hurt any worse than this morning. I'm thinking if that was the problem, it's still going to take a little time for me to heal completely. If it starts hurting, I will not accept the crown. I will ask for another impression of that tooth and have the lab completely make a new crown. My biggest fear is that if this crown feels fine and doesn't hurt again, that when it's put on with permanent cement if it's not placed on my tooth exactly right that I will be in pain eventually and it would have to be cut off.

Thelma-Louise:

If my tooth is still hurting on Monday with this crown, I want to ask my dentist to put my temporaries back on to see if the pain stops. I know he won't like that. I'm wondering why he didn't suggest that I keep wearing the temporaries for a while just to see if the pain would go away. He feels so strongly that it's not the crown. He hasn't suggested or offered to take another impression and start over. He's so intimidating; I feel like I have to stand up for myself.

That's kind of how my former dentist was too. I think his ego got in the way - as if he thought I was blaming him or thought it was his fault. At one point I even offered to pay for a new crown but he just got so adamant about it and at one point said I was imagining the pain. I'm sorry I ever went to him and sorrier that I didn't recognize what a bad dentist he was - not in terms of his skills, but as a health care professional in general. The tmj dentist I am seeing now as well as several other drs I have seen since (due to chronic facial nerve and muscle pain) all said at the very least he should have removed the crown and gone back to a temp for a few months and let the tooth settle down and then tried it again - so your idea is a good one - hopefully your dentist will at least consider your suggestion. Any pain is a signal something is wrong - and ignoring it won't make it go away - for me I think the constant pain from the crown led to some type of facial nerve damage or injury - so if you start arguing with your dentist over this as I did do yourself a favor and just find another "good" dentist. Let me know how you make out. Good Luck.

PS one dr mentioned that the metal used in my "problem" crown was different (heavier and thicker) than what I had in other crowns and the reason the temp was OK was b/c there was no metal - he suggested going forward that I go with lighter material for crowns - they are not as durable but the weight of the crown would be lighter which might have contributed to my problem as well. It makes you wonder though - just how much do we need to know - I kind of just took it for granted that a crown was a crown - didn't know I needed to know what was underneath it.

That's kind of how my former dentist was too. I think his ego got in the way - as if he thought I was blaming him or thought it was his fault. At one point I even offered to pay for a new crown but he just got so adamant about it and at one point said I was imagining the pain. I'm sorry I ever went to him and sorrier that I didn't recognize what a bad dentist he was - not in terms of his skills, but as a health care professional in general. The tmj dentist I am seeing now as well as several other drs I have seen since (due to chronic facial nerve and muscle pain) all said at the very least he should have removed the crown and gone back to a temp for a few months and let the tooth settle down and then tried it again - so your idea is a good one - hopefully your dentist will at least consider your suggestion. Any pain is a signal something is wrong - and ignoring it won't make it go away - for me I think the constant pain from the crown led to some type of facial nerve damage or injury - so if you start arguing with your dentist over this as I did do yourself a favor and just find another "good" dentist. Let me know how you make out. Good Luck.

PS one dr mentioned that the metal used in my "problem" crown was different (heavier and thicker) than what I had in other crowns and the reason the temp was OK was b/c there was no metal - he suggested going forward that I go with lighter material for crowns - they are not as durable but the weight of the crown would be lighter which might have contributed to my problem as well. It makes you wonder though - just how much do we need to know - I kind of just took it for granted that a crown was a crown - didn't know I needed to know what was underneath it.


Thelma-Louise:

I went back to the dentist this afternoon and had him take off the crown and put on the temporary. I was in so much pain my face was going numb. My dentist told me to call his office on Monday so they can try to get me in sooner to the edondontist. He blew cool air on my natural tooth and it didn't hurt. He picked the temporary cement off and it didn't hurt. He said maybe my tooth is dying from the inside. Again, absolutely doesn't think it has anything to do with the crown. I'm feeling some relief already. I'm wondering if the first crown that was too yellow was not really a good fit, but because I didn't wear it for long it didn't have time to irritate me. I had been wearing the latest crown 3 weeks and it really started to hurt. Maybe that's where my dentist is confused. He thinks the core was a perfect fit the first time, therefore, there's nothing wrong with it. Someone told me that maybe I should see a prosthodontist specialist. He said they have to have an additional two to three years of speciality training. I may have to go that route.

Janny and Thelma,

My husband and I own a dental lab. My husband is the third generation in his family to be working in the lab and it's been in business for close to 60 years. So, the advice I'm about to give you comes from many years of taking impressions, shades, building crowns, etc.

You are paying your dentist to give you back the smile that you've lost. If you're unhappy with any of the work, it's your right to tell him. Insist on meeting with the "ceramist" so they can get the exact shade match. If the lab is out of town, have the dentist mail a photo of your smile to the lab. We do this ALL the time and it works.

Good luck

Janny and Thelma,

My husband and I own a dental lab. My husband is the third generation in his family to be working in the lab and it's been in business for close to 60 years. So, the advice I'm about to give you comes from many years of taking impressions, shades, building crowns, etc.

You are paying your dentist to give you back the smile that you've lost. If you're unhappy with any of the work, it's your right to tell him. Insist on meeting with the "ceramist" so they can get the exact shade match. If the lab is out of town, have the dentist mail a photo of your smile to the lab. We do this ALL the time and it works.

Good luck

Curlzzz2002:

Thank you. I've been hurt by a different dentist in the past, so this time I decided to stick up for myself. This is my new dentist and I've been seeing him less than one year. He already made me feel that I was being difficult and said he might not be able to do anything further for me. He then apologized and now he's trying to get it right. I know he's the professional and knows his business, but dentists can come across as confident but intimidating. We start thinking that they must be right. We finally have the color, but it's the fit on my #7, which is a small natural tooth underneath giving me problems. I'm wearing the temporary on that tooth again because it feels better than the crown. I was in so much pain yesterday that I requested the dentist take off that crown and put on my temporary.

Curlzzz2002, is it possible that when the first crown was made, the core did not fit properly, but because I wore it for only a short time it didn't have time to hurt? Now that I wore the new, whiter crown, same core, for three weeks it had time to hurt? Also, the first crown stayed on with the yellow temporary cement and now he has to use a stronger temporary cement on that one crown to hold it on. My dentist feels very strongly that there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with the crown. Even the lab said they don't know why the crown would hurt now when it didn't hurt before. He's referring me to an endodontist to see if I need a root canal. If I needed a root canal, wouldn't I hurt as much with the temporary? I'm confused by all of this.