When decay in a baby tooth is extensive, affects several surfaces, or follows a pulp treatment, a filling often will not survive. A preformed stainless-steel crown fits over the whole tooth and protects it until it exfoliates naturally.
Why not just a filling?
A large filling in a baby molar has relatively little tooth to bond to, and baby teeth have thinner enamel and a proportionally larger nerve chamber than adult teeth. Large fillings in these teeth fail at a considerably higher rate, and each replacement means another appointment for a child who may already be apprehensive.
A stainless-steel crown covers every surface, so decay cannot recur at the margins in the same way. Its success rate over the life of a baby tooth is substantially higher, which is why your dentist at Parkway Dental may recommend it even though it looks more involved.
Why keeping the tooth matters
Extracting a badly decayed baby molar is sometimes necessary, but it creates a space that the teeth behind can drift into, potentially blocking the eruption of the permanent tooth. Keeping the tooth in place with a crown preserves that space naturally and avoids the need for a space maintainer.
What to expect
The tooth is numbed with local anaesthetic. Decay is removed, the tooth is reduced slightly on all sides, and a preformed crown of the right size is selected, trimmed and crimped to fit snugly at the gumline. It is then cemented. The whole procedure is usually completed in a single visit.
The gum around the crown may be tender for a day or two.
Appearance and afterwards
The crown is silver in colour, which is the most common question parents ask. Because these are almost always placed on back molars, they are rarely visible. Tooth-coloured options such as zirconia crowns exist for front teeth or where appearance is a concern — ask if this matters to you.
Remind your child to brush around the crown, particularly at the gumline where the margin sits. When the baby tooth is naturally ready to exfoliate, the root resorbs as usual and the tooth and crown come out together, just as an uncrowned tooth would.