Chairside crown milling
A scanner and a milling unit in the office, so a crown is cut and fitted the same day.
A crown normally means two visits, a temporary you have to be careful with, and two to three weeks in between. We scan the tooth, design the crown on screen and cut it out of a ceramic block in the office while you wait.
What we use it for.
- A crown on a cracked or heavily filled back tooth, finished in one visit.
- A crown on a front tooth, shade-matched against the teeth beside it before it is cut.
- Rebuilding a tooth after a root canal, without weeks in a temporary.
- Replacing an old crown with a dark line showing at the gum.
- An onlay, when a tooth needs more than a filling but not a full crown.
- A crown on an implant, made to the scan of your own bite.
From your side of the chair.
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01
No impression tray
A camera the size of a pen traces the tooth. Nothing sets in your mouth and there is no tray to gag on.
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02
Shade matched in the chair
The ceramic block is chosen against the teeth either side of the gap, in the light you will be seen in, not from a photograph sent to a lab.
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03
Cut while you wait
The mill cuts the crown out of one solid block in about fifteen minutes. You can wait in the chair or step out for a coffee.
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Fitted and bonded
It is tried in, checked against your bite, glazed and bonded the same appointment.
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You leave with the tooth finished
No temporary, no second appointment, no second freezing.
What it costs, and who pays.
A milled crown is billed as a crown, at the same code as a lab-made one, so making it here does not add to the fee. Most Ontario plans cover between 50% and 80% of a crown, and coverage can depend on how long the tooth has been restored. We send a pre-authorisation to your insurer first, so you have their answer in writing before we start. We bill them directly for their share.
Ask for a written estimateChairside crown milling, answered.
Is a same-day crown as strong as a lab crown?
It is cut from one solid ceramic block, so there is no layering to chip off. For back teeth it is the same material a lab would use.
How long does the appointment take?
Around two hours from freezing to bonding, with the milling happening in the middle. Bring something to read, or step out and come back.
Can you match a front tooth?
Yes. The block is picked against your own teeth in the chair, and the crown is glazed and stained before it is bonded.
What if I already have a temporary from another dentist?
Bring it in. We can scan the prepared tooth and mill the final crown without starting over.
