Picture this scenario. It’s 9.30 am on Monday and you have someone scheduled to cement a crown. You pop the treatment crown off, clean the tooth and try the real crown in. Unfortunately it doesn’t fit. #%@&.
What do you do now?
Many dentists pick up a bur and grind on the crown trying to make it fit. That’s wrong for three reasons.
First, it lacks predictability. You might waste 20 minutes in an unsuccessful attempt to get it to fit. Even if you finally do get it to fit, it will not be a nice job. Second, you’ll weaken the crown. Grinding thins the structure and predisposes the crown to fracture. Third, the patient won’t like it. They’ve paid good money for this crown and they want a perfect job.
What’s the alternative?
Personally I only ever spend about 10 seconds trying to get a crown to fit. If it doesn’t fit after 10 seconds I take a fresh impression and get a new crown made. Because I’m careful with preparation and impression taking, less than 1% of my crowns don’t fit.
Doing it this way keeps your stress level low and lets you deliver a quality product to your patient. It’s fair for all concerned.
