Crowns & Bridges in Fort Collins
You have an active lifestyle, and the last thing you need is dental problems that slow you down.
Teeth that are missing or don’t function properly can make speaking and enjoying your favorite foods difficult and uncomfortable. Worse yet, knowing your smile is less than healthy can prevent you from engaging confidently with friends and business associates.
At Buxton Family Dental, we are pleased to offer solutions for a damaged smile so you can get back to enjoying your life fully again. Dr. Kendell Buxton is skilled at creating esthetic dental restorations like porcelain crowns and bridges that improve your oral health and restore your confident smile. He takes the time to listen to your concerns, identify the problem, and work with you to develop a treatment plan that makes sense for you in every way.
Crowns Protect and Strengthen Teeth
We usually recommend a dental crown when a tooth is too damaged or decayed to be restored with a filling. A crown is designed like a cap to fit over the tooth, replacing lost structure and restoring functionality.
Our patients usually choose all-porcelain crowns because they are durable, and we can customize the shape, size, and shade to blend seamlessly with the rest of your smile. As far as restorations go, dental crowns are one of the most versatile. Some of the purposes for which we use dental crowns are:
- Protecting teeth damaged by grinding or dental wear
- Strengthening a tooth after root canal treatment
- Restoring dental implants
- Protecting and strengthening cracked or fractured teeth
- Improving the shape, shade, or positioning of a tooth
Placing Your Dental Crown
Everyone has unique needs, but placing a dental crown typically requires only two visits. First, Dr. Buxton prepares your natural tooth to make room for your new crown to fit properly. Next, we take impressions that will be used to prepare a mold for your crown. The mold is sent to a custom dental lab where your crown is fabricated to our exact specifications.
In about two to three weeks, we will have you return to our Fort Collins dental office so we can place your final crown. The result is a stronger tooth that fits comfortably, functions properly, and improves your appearance.
Esthetic Bridges Replace Missing Teeth
A missing tooth looks unattractive, undermines your self-confidence, and makes speaking and chewing comfortably a challenge. At Buxton Family Dental, we design dental bridges that restore function, improve your oral health, and enhance your appearance. Dental bridges are often used to:
- Fill in the space created by a missing tooth
- Prevent adjacent teeth from drifting into the space
- Provide a fixed alternative to removable partial dentures
A dental bridge is designed to “bridge” the gap between two teeth. It is securely attached to neighboring teeth, which makes it very stable. In some cases, we may recommend adding a dental implant for further stability.
Expect the Highest Standard of Care!
Making the decision to have any type of dental restoration placed involves a commitment of time and money on your part. Dr. Buxton will listen to your concerns, explain all your options, and answer your questions to ensure that the result exceeds your expectations.
Would you like to learn more about our state-of-the-art restorations? Please call us and we will be happy to arrange a consultation at your convenience.
Frequently Asked Questions
A great smile can have a huge impact on your life. There are various ways to improve the color, shape or alignment of your teeth. Here are a few of the treatment options we offer here at Buxton Family Dental.
Teeth Whitening: Do your teeth seem naturally darker than other people's teeth? Have your teeth turned a darker color over the years? Do "whitening" toothpastes not seem to have any effect? This is often solved with a simple professional whitening treatment. Learn more about how we can brighten your smile here.
Bonding: If your teeth are minimally chipped, damaged or needing reshaped, cosmetic bonding is the quickest, most affordable and most conservative option. Using tooth-colored filling material your front teeth can be improved in just one visit.
Veneers: Veneers are more expensive, require removal of more tooth structure and take more time, but the result is a life-like, long-lasting smile. Veneers are custom made out of ceramic by a dental lab and replace the outer most layer of your visible teeth.
Crowns: If your teeth have had more significant damage from wear, cavities, etc. the above options may not provide enough strength. Full coverage crowns can achieve your cosmetic goals while reinforcing your teeth at the same time. These too are made by a dental lab and require more than one appointment.
While crowns are meant to last a very long time, this all depends on the way you treat the crown and use your teeth. For example, someone who grinds their teeth can expect to replace the crown due to breakdown at some point in the future. Many older crowns were "porcelain-fused-to-metal" crowns or simply referred to as a "PFM". These crowns have a metal substructure with porcelain on top to appear like a natural tooth. Over time the porcelain can weaken and chip away exposing the metal underneath. If you have a crown that has broken down in some way its a simple procedure to remove the crown and replace it with a new crown made of the most modern materials.
Meet Our Doctor:
Kendell Buxton DDS
Dentist
Dr. Buxton is originally from a small town in Cache Valley of northern Utah. Cache Valley is home to Utah State University, where Dr. Buxton began his undergraduate studies in 1998. After completion of his coursework at USU, he moved to the Midwest, where he earned his dental degree at The Ohio State University College of Dentistry in 2008. Since that time, he has worked in several outstanding private practices in Ohio, New Mexico, and now Colorado.
Dr. Buxton chose Fort Collins as his final destination because of its many similarities ...
Featured Blog Posts - Crowns & Bridges
Need a Crown? The 3 Steps You Can Expect
A dental crown is an excellent way to restore a tooth that has been fractured or decayed beyond what a filling can repair. Your crown is designed to replace your full tooth structure so you can enjoy all the function you had before.
Your dentist uses high-quality ceramic porcelain that is designed to complement your smile by blending flawlessly with your neighboring teeth. Now that you're ready for your dental crown in Fort Collins, here's what you can expect during your treatment.
Step #1: Preparation
Your crown will require two visits with your ...
Benefits of a Dental Bridge
When a tooth is missing, people hide their smile or may constantly worry about their speaking voice.
"Does the gap show when I smile?"
"Is the letter “S” too pronounced when I speak?" Yes, a missing tooth or teeth can alter your speaking voice.
Other ways a missing tooth or teeth influence your life
- Limited dietary options
- The possibility of surrounding teeth shifting toward the empty socket
- Wear and tear on surrounding teeth forced to do all the chewing
- Changes to your facial profile
At Buxton Family Dental, we design dental bridges that make eating easy, restore your ...