Restorative dentistry in the south of Tenerife

Dental crowns in Los Cristianos, to protect a weakened tooth

A properly indicated crown saves teeth that a filling can no longer support. A poorly indicated crown unnecessarily shaves down half a healthy tooth. This page teaches you the full staircase — filling, inlay/onlay, crown — and how to know which step your tooth is really on.

Treatments with flexible financing — detailed conditions in writing at the clinic.

Book your free consultationCall: +34 654 58 55 53

4.7 out of 5 on Google · 162 reviews

  • Inlays when they are enough
  • Digital workflow: scanner, no impressions
  • We serve in Spanish and English
Ceramic dental crown held with pliers before placement

Quick summary

The most important thing before deciding

~1,5–2mm of tooth carves a full crown — that's why it is only indicated when it's truly necessary
92–95 %inlays survive 5 years in studies — the middle step that almost no one offers
6×higher risk of losing an endodontically treated molar if it is not protected with coverage, according to the classic study
0,5minimum thickness mm of modern zirconia: allows less reduction than other ceramics
  • What it is: a custom-made crown that completely covers the damaged tooth and restores its shape, function, and aesthetics.
  • When yes: severe destruction, fractures, and endodontically treated molars with heavy bite forces.
  • When not: If the damage fits an inlay, a crown cuts too much tooth. There is an intermediate step.
  • The shade, first: if you want bleach, do it before choosing the colour of the crown — the crown is not bleached afterwards.

What sets us apart

The conservative ladder: filling, inlay, crown — in that order

Restorative dentistry has a rule that modern literature clearly repeats: preserve dental structure whenever possible, choosing partial restoration over full coverage — even when faced with crowns made of materials as strong as monolithic zirconia.

The stairs go up like this. If the damage is moderate, a filling (we tell it here). If the destruction exceeds what the direct composite can reliably support, the inlay (inlay/onlay): a custom-made ceramic or composite piece that restores just what is missing — including cusps — while requiring significantly less tooth reduction than a crown. Studies attribute survival rates to them of 92–95 % at 5 years and around 91 % at 10. And only when the tooth is badly damaged or needs complete protection, the crown.

The uncomfortable truth of the industry: the inlay/onlay is the step many dental practices skip, going straight from the large filling to the crown. Every unnecessary leap costs millimetres of your tooth. Here, the stairs are climbed step by step, and you are shown on the X-ray why your tooth is on its own step.

A technical detail that almost no one talks about: what removes the most tooth structure in a crown is not the wear on the chewing surface, but how far down does the margin go towards the gum. Higher margin when viable = more tooth preserved. These are invisible decisions that define how many decades your tooth has left. And when the problem is not a damaged tooth but a missing tooth, the crowns work as a team on the neighbouring ones: this is how it works the bridge — with its own page and its own fine print.

When a crown is indicated and when another option is better

The evidence here is nuanced, and we are telling it to you just like it is.

Solid indications

  • Endodontically treated molar that bites hard: The classic study found about 6 times more losses without protective coverage. Premolars and molars after endodontic treatment are the prime indication.
  • Extensive destruction due to cavities or a fracture, when few walls remain and the inlay no longer has anywhere to grip.
  • Symptomatic cracks that hurt when chewing: full coverage embraces the tooth and prevents the crack from progressing.
  • On an implant, as a permanent tooth — with its own rules, below.

Where to hold back

  • Endodontically treated anterior teeth with minimal destruction: Many times, reconstruction and control are enough. The automatic crown "because it had a root canal" does not hold up.
  • Damage that fits in an inlay: To crown there is to cut too much. Always ask for the middle step.
  • Purely aesthetic reason on a healthy tooth: that's what they are for the veneers, which respect much more tissue — and we already told you there about the difference with crowns and the Turkish messes.
  • A fact to decide calmly: Shaping a live tooth carries a small but real risk (around 9 % in long-term studies) that the nerve will eventually require root canal treatment. Another reason not to place a crown unnecessarily.

Crown materials: advantages and limitations

"What is the best crown?" The honest answer: none in the abstract. Every material has its place.

Indicative comparison. The indication depends on the tooth, the position, and your bite.
AppearancePorcelain-fused-to-metalMonolithic zirconiaLithium disilicate
Strong pointTried and tested; economicalMaximum strength; allows for less carving (0.5 mm minimum thickness)The most natural aesthetics in visible teeth
WeaknessThe ceramic coating can chip; grey edge if the gum recedesAesthetics slightly more opaque than disilicate in previous onesLess resistant: better in anteriors and premolars
Where it shinesBarely visible molars on a tight budgetMolars and teeth grinders; implant-supported crownsIncisors and canines, where to look

Two nuances of the fine print we like to share: the fear that zirconia will "wear down the front teeth" depends on the finish — Well polished wears little; glazed, more —, a laboratory detail, not a material one. And gold, which almost no one asks for anymore for aesthetic reasons, remains one of the longest-lasting options in the literature: if a patient wants it on a back molar, we won't say no.

How we work

Your crown step by step

Diagnosis and plan

Examination, X-ray, and the staircase conversation: why a crown and not an inlay (or vice versa), recommended material, and a fixed written quotation.

Preparation

Under local anaesthesia, just enough is trimmed for the chosen material and the core is rebuilt if necessary. The margin is left as high as the case permits: every tenth counts.

Digital scanner

Intraoral scanner registration — no impression pastes — and shade matching with your neighbouring teeth. You leave with an aesthetic provisional in place.

Manufacturing

The laboratory mills and characterises your custom crown. In previous ones, the technician's manual characterisation makes the difference between "good" and "indistinguishable".

Trial and cementation

Fit, contact, and colour are tested with you present; if anything is not to your liking, it goes back to the laboratory. Only then is it permanently cemented.

Control

Bite check in a few days and entry into your routine check-up schedule. If you grind at night, a night guard: the crown is protected as well.

Book your free consultationCall: +34 654 58 55 53

Dental crown and implant crown: cousins, not twins

The crown that tops a implant It looks similar on the outside and changes on the inside. The first difference is good: An implant-supported crown cannot get cavities.. The second is the fine print: the gum around the implant can indeed get sick (peri-implantitis), so check-ups are non-negotiable.

The third one is technical and it's always a good idea to ask: does it go screw-retained or cement-retainedThe screw-retained one is easily removed if anything needs to be checked. The cement-retained one requires impeccable cement management: studies link subgingival cement remnants to a large majority of gum problems around implants. Here we prefer to screw-retain when the position allows it — and we tell you which one you have and why.

Custom dental implant crown fabrication

Post, core build-up, and ferrule: the unseen foundations

When a root-canal-treated tooth has lost a lot of structure, the crown needs something to hold on to. That is where the core build-up and, if there is little tooth left, the post anchored in the canal. They are the foundations of the building: invisible in the final photo and decisive as to whether the crown lasts twenty years or two.

And there is a concept that prosthetists consider the most important of all and almost no patient has heard of: the ferrule —a healthy tooth ring of at least a couple of millimetres that the crown must embrace above the gumline. With a ferrule, chewing forces are borne by the tooth; without it, they are borne by the post, and posts without a ferrule end up fracturing roots. If a tooth does not retain that ring, the honest thing may be to tell you that the crown is not a good investment and talk about alternatives — before charging you a damn crown.

Same-day crowns? What the CAD/CAM system makes possible

There are systems that mill a crown right at the chairside in a single visit. The technology is real and for certain cases—less visible molars, inlays—it is extremely convenient: no temporary, no second visit.

The fine print is aesthetic: a milled and custom-shaded crown in one hour it does not compete with the manual characterisation of a good laboratory technician on an incisor that is visible when smiling. Layers, translucency, texture: that is still craftsmanship that takes days, not minutes. Our policy is the same as this entire page: convenience is offered where it does not compromise the result, and where it is visible, the lab wins. If one day you are offered "all in one hour" for your front tooth, ask who characterises the ceramic.

How long does a crown last?

Systematic reviews place the survival rates of modern crowns at high figures at 5 and 10 years—with the usual caveat that "surviving" does not always mean "intact": porcelain chipping in metal-ceramic crowns and screw loosening in implants are the typical incidents, and they are almost always repairable.

What truly kills crowns is more boring: margin caries — the crown-tooth junction is the boundary that must be brushed as if you were getting paid for it, with an interdental brush or water flosser included in the routine — and the bruxism without a night guard. With good margin hygiene, check-ups, and a night guard if you clench, a well-made crown is measured in decades. And when it reaches the end of its life, it is replaced: like everything that chews thousands of times a day, it is a service part, not a monument.

Transparency

Price of a dental crown: what it depends on and what to ask

Dental crown

From €380

An implant-supported crown starts at €890, with financing from €70/month. The quotation distinguishes between the material, the laboratory, and any necessary prior treatment.

Indicative price. The final quotation depends on the clinical evaluation and is provided in writing before starting treatment.

The difference between clinics is explained by three things: the material (and her laboratory), which includes the price, and if the tooth needs it previous work (reconstruction, post, endodontics). Comparing only the crown number is making a bad comparison.

What does a crown quote always include here

  • The diagnosis with the explained ladderWhy a crown and not an inlay/onlay
  • The the specific material in writing — "ceramic" alone is not a material
  • The reconstruction or post if your tooth needs it, quoted from the beginning
  • The provisional while the final one is being manufactured
  • The try-in before cementation and the subsequent bite review

Flexible financing available; detailed conditions in writing at the clinic.

Request a quotation in writing

Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions about dental crowns

Does getting a crown hurt?

The preparation is done with local anaesthesia and is not felt. Afterwards, there may be mild sensitivity for a few days, especially in live teeth, and temporary gum discomfort around the provisional. Everything is transient.

How long does a crown last?

The 5- and 10-year published figures are high, and a well-maintained crown is measured in decades. Its real enemies: margin decay and bruxism without a night guard. Edge hygiene, check-ups, and a night guard if you clench.

What material is best for me?

It depends on where it goes and how you bite: disilicate where it shows, zirconia where you chew hard, porcelain-fused-to-metal as a proven and economical option in less visible areas. We will give you a reasoned recommendation and, if there are viable alternatives, a quote for both.

Crown or veneer?

If the reason is aesthetic and the tooth is healthy, the veneer preserves much more tissue (tenths of a millimetre compared to ~2 mm). The crown is for damaged teeth that need complete protection. The full comparison is on our veneers page.

I had a root canal, do I definitely need a crown?

On heavy-chewing molars and premolars, protective coverage is well supported: without it, the risk of losing the tooth multiplies. On slightly damaged front teeth, reconstruction is often enough. Decisions are made tooth by tooth, not by slogan.

What is an inlay and why are you offering it to me?

A custom-made restoration that rebuilds only the destroyed part of the tooth, requiring less preparation than a crown, with 5-year survival rates of 92–95 % in studies. It’s the middle step on the ladder: if your tooth fits there, getting a crown would mean removing more of your tooth than necessary.

Is the implant-supported crown the same as the tooth-supported one?

It looks similar on the outside; the maintenance is different. It cannot get cavities, but the tissue around the implant can get diseased, and it is good to know if it is screw-retained (easier to check) or cemented (requires strict control of the cement). We will tell you which one you have and why.

Can a dental crown fall out?

It can become uncemented over the years; it can usually be repositioned if the tooth underneath is healthy. If this happens to you, save it, do not use household glues, and call: assessing why it came loose is just as important as cementing it back on.

Related options

Compare alternatives before deciding. These options are usually part of the same diagnosis or treatment plan.

Dental bridgesCheck indications, process and frequently asked questions.Root canal treatmentCheck indications, process and frequently asked questions.Dental implantsCheck indications, process and frequently asked questions.

First visit

Request your assessment in Los Cristianos

Examination, X-ray, and the treatment options ladder explained with your case in front of you — with a fixed written quotation. Write to us and we will call you to schedule an appointment.

or
I prefer to write on WhatsApp

Data Controller: Clínica Dental Los Cristianos. Purpose: to process your appointment request. We do not share your data with third parties.

  • AddressCalle Barranquillo, 2
    38650 Los Cristianos, Arona (Santa Cruz de Tenerife)
  • Phone and WhatsApp+34 654 58 55 53
  • Emailinfo@smiletenerife.com
  • Opening hoursMonday and Wednesday: 10:00 – 19:00
    Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 10:00 – 17:00
    Saturdays and Sundays: closed
How to get thereWrite on WhatsApp
Book an appointment

Start typing and press enter to search

Scroll to Top