Ever since I had five porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns placed on five of my upper teeth, I’ve been unhappy. I’ve tried to get it figured out and am wondering if I need to see a metal-free-dentist. It has been three years now and I have had strange side effects. For example, I grind my teeth now. Before these crowns were in place, I had gold crowns and I never had any issues and didn’t grind my teeth. I feel like the constant grinding at night will take a toll on my bottom teeth too. The dentist had me get a mouth guard. Also, I am constantly thinking about the crowns because I get a strange sensation on the roof of my mouth, where it feels itchy. Is it possible that I have a metal allergy?
-Joanna in Wisconsin
Joanna,
First off, you need to know that it is very difficult to pinpoint exactly what is going on without having seen your specific case in person. However, from what you have explained in your question, it sounds like there could be a couple different issues.
The itchy sensation you mention may be due to a metal allergy. The best thing to do would be to contact the dentist that did the crowns and find out what the composition of the alloy that was present in the metal framework used. The laboratory used by the dentist will provide a certification, which will outline this information. Many people with metal allergies are actually allergic to nickel. So, the abbreviation of “Ni” would indicate nickel is in the metal framework.
Have you ever had any other issues with metals? For example, some people are allergic to earrings or metal on clothing or other jewelry.
The dentist should have gathered your medical history prior to any kind of treatment, like dental crowns. There would have been a question to indicate any allergies, including metal. Even though your dentist may not have promoted himself as a metal-free-dentist, he could have ordered your crowns without the nickel in them. However, the type of nickel-free crown that works well for people with allergies is more expensive, which may have been a deterrent.
There are three different criteria of metals used in dental work. For example, “high noble” would include gold or platinum. The margin is finer and fits the tooth better. The next category is “noble” which contains silver and likely nickel or beryllium. This types of metals can be prone to allergies. Then, the lowest category is “base metal” which contains stiff alloys and typically don’t provide the best fit.
The second complication you mention is grinding your teeth. The metal in the crown doesn’t have anything to do with this issue. Sometimes, when crowns are done, your bite may be off. What happens is that your body is constantly trying to correct this problem and grinding is a typical response. A night guard will help the night grinding. Your crowns can also be adjusted to help correct your bite. Your dentist should be able to help you with this problem.
Lastly, your concern in causing damage to the lower teeth is valid. The metal backing in the porcelain crowns can wear down the bottom teeth. So, you will want to continue to have the grinding issue examined to hopefully resolve it sooner than later.
Hopefully, this information is helpful.
This post is sponsored by Petaluma dentist Rick Lane.