A dental crowns is a restoration that covers a tooth that has become compromised. A tooth that has fractured, cracked or broken will benefit from a dental crown. Dentist may use zirconia dental crowns as they are the strongest restoration material available. Zirconia crowns can last for years and even decades with proper care and routine dental checkups.

Why are Dental Crowns needed?

Before a crown is placed, dentists will perform an exam to determine if it is needed. Crowns can be placed on adult teeth that have been compromised in some way. The most common reasons for needing a zirconia crown include:

• A tooth has broken, cracked, fractured or chipped
  • A tooth has a large filling
  • You’ve recently had a root canal
  • A dental implant was placed and has healed

What is Zirconia Made of?

Zirconia restorations are made from Zirconia dioxide, a metal oxide. The incredible strength of monolithic Zirconia used for dental restorations comes from its tetragonal crystalline properties. The all-ceramic material doesn’t require any unsightly metal substructure for stability, is resistant to wear, and difficult to crack.

Special Features of Zirconia

Zirconia crowns were first introduced to dentistry in 2010. Before being milled into crowns, Zirconia was used in dentistry for endodontic posts and dental implants. The bulk material is provided to the dental laboratory in the form of pressed solid blocks. These blocks are then milled into a 3-dimensional crown or framework using CAD/CAM production, assuring a void-free, precise-fitting restoration every time.

There are no metals involved in the process, which allows for aesthetically pleasing crown margins with no visible dark lines or shadows.

Zirconia dental crown benefits

Crowns made of zirconia are becoming increasingly common, and they do offer some advantages.

1.Strength

One of the biggest advantages of zirconia is its strength and durability. Consider how much force your back teeth exert on the food that you chew.

Your crowns need to be made of a strong material, so zirconia may be a good choice for crowns in the back of your mouth. Also, because zirconia is so strong, a dentist won’t have to do as much preparation of your tooth.

2.Longevity

Zirconia-based crowns fared just as well over the course of 5 years as metal-based crowns. And crowns made of zirconia, called monolithic zirconia crowns, are especially durable.

3.Biocompatibility

Zirconia is the choice of many dentists for its biocompatibility, which means it’s less likely to provoke the body into producing a reaction or immunological response like inflammation. A study confirms this, and it also found only a limited amount of cytotoxicity.

4.Same-day procedure

Many dentists can make zirconia crowns in their offices rather than sending an impression of your tooth to a lab to have a crown made. Then, they can cement the crown into your mouth in a single visit.

The CEREC, or Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics, process uses computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) technology to speed up this process. The dentist uses a dental milling machine to actually make the crown from a block of zirconia.

This process eliminates the need to stretch the procedure into two visits. However, not every dentist office has this technology in-house or offers zirconia crowns.

Disadvantages of a Zirconia Crown

It must be highlighted that dental specialist in the field of prosthodontics are trained and qualified to make individual assessment of each patient and customize treatment plan using zirconia based prosthetics that can cater your functional and aesthetic demands. comprehensive diagnostic assessment by Prosthodontist must be done. Like many other dental procedures, there can be potential disadvantages to getting a zirconia crown.

1.Can be hard to match

One potential disadvantage of a zirconia crown is its opaque appearance, which can make it look less than natural. This is especially true for monolithic zirconia crowns, which are made just from zirconia, although it may be less of an issue for teeth in the back of your mouth.

2.Potential wear on other teeth

Some dentists have been hesitant to use zirconia crowns in some circumstances for fear that the hardness of the zirconia could cause wear and tear on opposing teeth.

While that may be a concern, a study  found that feldspathic porcelain was much more likely than zirconia ceramic to cause wear on the enamel of opposing teeth.

Zirconium Crown vs other types of dental crowns

1.VS Emax (Lithium Disilicate)

Zirconia crown unlike Emax (Lithium Disilicate) dental crowns is sturdier, stronger and are more durable. When we process zirconia, its surface is highly polished which makes it very smooth. Also, zirconia maintains its anatomical shape. Emax (Lithium Disilicate) is a material with lesser solidness which is why it is designed for maximum aesthetics and beauty of front teeth.

Because zircon as a material is extremely strong, it can be thin, which means that a dentist can be more conservative in preparation which will save more patient’s natural teeth.

Emax (Lithium Disilicate) is a material which has to be carved and attached in place, while zircon can be conventionally cemented which makes a process significantly easier.

One of the disadvantages of zircon as a material is that it not at all translucent.  Emax (Lithium Disilicate) is much more translucent material, and it makes teeth very natural.

2.VS Ceramic Crowns

Zirconia crown is different from the ceramic crown in its solidness; zirconia is much more substantial material. Even though this is a benefit of zirconia crowns in most cases, sometimes it can be a disadvantage when we make dental bridges between certain teeth, and we need a material with more elasticity.

Chipping of the ceramics cannot occur with monolithic zirconia crowns because there is no ceramics that can chip.

3.VS Porcelain Crowns

• Zirconia crown is a better choice than other materials because of its numerous advantages.
• Unlike zirconia crown, a porcelain crown is not as strong, durable and long-lasting.
• Also, when we talk about aesthetics, the zirconia crown is a much better aesthetical solution because it gives teeth natural colour and natural appearance.

4.VS Porcelain Fused to Metal Crowns

Zirconia and titanium are the only two materials that the body doesn’t recognize as a foreign material which makes biological tolerance of zirconia much better; on the other hand, zirconia is aesthetically more acceptable.

How Long Do Zirconia Crowns Last?

The average lifespan of Zirconia crowns is currently unknown. Zirconia crowns are relatively new to dentistry as compared to other types of crowns. Therefore, longevity studies are currently unavailable. The average lifespan is estimated to be approximately 20 years. Of course, how long any dental restoration lasts in vivo depends heavily upon the home care and habits of the individual patient.

Are Zirconia Crowns Safe?

All-ceramic Zirconia dioxide has been used extensively in the field of medical prosthetics, such as joint replacements, since the 1960’s. In the 1990’s, Zirconia was introduced to dentistry in the form of endodontic posts and dental implants. Milled Zirconia crowns became commercially available in 2010. Zirconia has a long history of use in the human body. Its strength and biocompatibility make it the ideal, safe choice for a restorative dental material. Many patients are concerned about the use of metals in dental restorations and how they may lead to adverse health effects. With Zirconia, this concern is alleviated because the material is chemically unreactive.

Zirconia crown cost 

In general, dental crowns in general can be very pricey. Zirconia crowns typically cost more than other types of dental crowns, such as ceramic, metal, and porcelain. Your geographic location can also affect the cost.