Advantages of a shouldered crown

Why is traditional polishing not so good? Why is shoulder preparation necessary?

There are numerous disadvantages known in connection with traditionally-made crowns. Despite this, there are very few dentists who don’t polish in the traditional way, namely with shoulder preparation. Many times, the argument in favour of the old, conventional method is the fact that less bone material needs to be removed. However, in such cases, the prepared and the unprepared surface can’t be differentiated clearly - thus, it’s not possible to determine the edge of the crown.

Why is it a problem if the edge of the crown can’t be determined?

When it came to the traditional way of preparation, the edge of the crown was often put under the gum which caused irritation. The long-term consequences of this were gingivitis, then receding gums. Because of this, the crown edge that was originally placed under the gums became visible - it appeared as a gray line on the border of the crown and gums. This meant an aesthetic drawback for the patients and besides that, periodontal disease and bone destruction could have occurred as the result of gingivitis and gum recession.

Due to the numerous negative consequences, we don’t use this kind of traditional stump preparation technique. The experts working at DENTOP teach and practice the modern method of shoulder preparation. During this intervention, we form a small shoulder on the tooth - close to the gum, but above it. This shoulder provides support for the crown. The dental technician applies an additional ceramic layer on this shoulder, which prevents the metallic transparency of the crown. Beyond having an enhanced aesthetic role, this procedure increases the strength of the cervical portion of the crown.

What are the advantages of a shouldered crown?

It preserves the health of the gums and prevents damage to the periodontal tissues
There’s no gray gumline (with metal-ceramic crowns)
It provides a perfect seal and the edge of the crown does not protrude from the surface of the tooth - thus, there's a less chance that there will be caries under the gums
The entire metal edge may be covered so it’s practically invisible
Gingivitis and gum recession is preventable