An onlay instead of a crown
Covers only the cusps that need protecting and leaves the rest of the tooth alone. Where the tooth allows it, this is the better answer, and we will propose it.
Treatment 06
Bonding and crowns
Composite sculpted in a single visit, or full-coverage ceramic where a tooth no longer has enough structure left to hold together.
Bonding one visit · crowns two visits over 2–3 weeksComposite bonding, per tooth: $390 — $650
What it actually is
Bonding, veneers and crowns sit on a spectrum of how much tooth is involved. Composite bonding adds material and removes almost nothing. A veneer replaces the front surface. A crown covers the whole tooth and is the most invasive of the three. The correct answer is nearly always the least invasive option that will actually hold — and one of the more common conversations we have is talking somebody out of crowns and into bonding.
The sequence
4 stages, in this order, for this reason.
- 01
Assess what is left
How much sound tooth remains, whether the tooth is root-treated, whether it is cracked, and how it is loaded in your bite. That decides bonding versus crown, not preference.
Visit one · 45 minutes - 02
Bonding, if the tooth allows
Composite is layered directly onto the tooth, shaped, cured and polished in a single appointment. Nothing is sent to a laboratory and almost no tooth is removed.
One visit · 45–90 minutes - 03
Crown preparation, where it does not
The tooth is reduced, scanned, and a temporary crown fitted. Modern bonded ceramics allow more conservative preparations than the metal-backed crowns most people remember.
Visit one · 90 minutes - 04
Fit
Ceramic tried in, contacts and bite checked, then bonded or cemented depending on the material. The bite is refined with you sitting upright as well as reclined.
Visit two · 45 minutes, 2–3 weeks later
Who it suits
- Chipped or worn front edges — bonding, usually in one visit
- Small gaps between front teeth where orthodontics is not wanted
- Teeth with large old fillings that are cracking — a crown or onlay
- Root-treated back teeth, which fracture at a much higher rate uncovered
When we would say no
- A tooth with active decay under the old restoration — that is treated first
- Heavy grinders, for front-edge bonding, without a night guard
- Cases where the whole smile needs redesigning; that is a veneer conversation
Instead of this
The alternatives, including the cheaper ones.
A cosmetic practice that never names the less profitable option is not giving you a choice.
Porcelain veneers
Where several front teeth need shape and shade changed together, veneers hold colour and polish far longer than composite.
Repair rather than replace
A chipped composite can often be repaired in twenty minutes. Not everything needs remaking.
Before you agree
What can go wrong, and what we cannot promise.
This is the part most sites leave out. It is also the part that a consent discussion is legally and ethically built on.
- Composite picks up stain at the margins, particularly in coffee and red wine drinkers, and typically needs repolishing every year or two.
- Crown preparation is irreversible and removes a significant volume of tooth. It is a treatment for a tooth that is already compromised.
- Any tooth prepared for a crown carries a small risk of subsequently needing root canal treatment.
- Ceramic can fracture under heavy grinding. A night guard is part of the plan for anyone with wear facets.
Fee
$390 — $650
Composite bonding, per tooth. Ceramic onlay $1,250. Full ceramic crown $1,550. Members receive 15% off all restorative fees.
Indicative. Your written plan is itemised and is produced only after an examination. Members take 15% off restorative fees. We are out of network; you receive a coded receipt for out-of-network reimbursement.
A word on language. You will not read the word “painless” on this site, and you will not read that any restoration is permanent. Local anaesthetic makes most treatment comfortable at the time; some procedures are sore afterwards and we will tell you which and for how long. Restorations are maintainable, not eternal. Anyone promising otherwise is selling rather than consenting.
Questions
About bonding and crowns
If one or two edges need repairing and the shade is good, bonding — cheaper, reversible, one visit. If six or eight teeth need shape and shade changed as a set and you want it to hold for a decade, veneers. We will show you both on a mock-up.
Commonly five to seven years before it needs replacing, less at a biting edge in someone who grinds, more on a low-load surface. It is a maintainable restoration rather than a definitive one, and that is a reasonable trade for the cost and the tooth it preserves.
On a back tooth, usually yes. Root-treated molars that are left uncovered fracture at a much higher rate, and a vertical root fracture is usually the end of the tooth. On a front tooth with plenty of structure remaining, often no.
For most situations, yes. Modern zirconia and lithium disilicate ceramics have strength figures that comfortably cover normal function. Material choice depends on the tooth, the load and how much the shade matters.
Related
Often discussed alongside this
Ninety minutes, and you leave with a written plan.
$190, credited against treatment. Scottsdale, on Kierland Boulevard.