IN PRIVATE PRACTICE / THE SEARCH
JOURNEY TO EXCELLENCE (MIS)STEPS ALONG THE WAY AND A FINAL SATISFYING DISCOVERY By ANDREW JASON SHANNON, DMD Dr. Andrew Jason Shannon with his family.
I GRADUATED FROM my pediatric dental residency in 2007. At the time there were very limited choices when it came to "white" pediatric crowns. To be honest, we didn't have much demand for these types of crowns in my residency program in Rhode Island. That soon changed when I moved back to Northern Virginia and started my own practice. We all know that the standard SSC is functional, but, for obvious reasons, it's not always the most esthetic option. After realizing that parents where not going to just always accept a SSC as the only option, I began my hunt for a crown that was functional, esthetic, durable, and easy to place. My first candidate was the esthetic-coated stainless steel crown. These crowns had been on the market for a long time and did satisfy some of the criteria I was looking
for. Quite frankly, they were my only choice at the time. The thick esthetic coating required me to prepare the tooth to fit the crown rather than adjust the crown to fit the tooth. This process took considerably more time and effort. While these crowns did prove to be a nice aesthetic option at initial placement, I soon learned that they did not hold up to the wear and tear that is seen in a child’s mouth. I found myself only offering these to parents that were strongly opposed to the dreaded "silver crowns." I even went so far as to have them sign a waiver stating they understood I could not guarantee that the white coating would not chip. Obviously, I wanted something better to offer my patients. So the search continued.
The wear and tear of the esthetic-coated stainless steel crown.
EZP ED O M ag azi n e / M a y 2016
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