Unlike porcelain veneers, dental crowns can be made from a variety of materials. It’s important to understand the benefits of the different materials used before making a decision on which one to use.
Metal crowns include gold crowns and crowns made from other alloys. These are the strongest crowns possible, although they cannot be color matched to adjacent teeth. Because of their strength and relatively poor aesthetic qualities, cosmetic dentists frequently use them for molars that are heavily used in daily chewing but are also out of sight in the back of the mouth.
Porcelain or ceramics are also used in cosmetic dentistry as materials for crowns. In many cases, porcelain crowns are fused to metal roots in order to create a stronger crown. However, these can cause wear on adjacent teeth quicker than when all-porcelain crowns are used. Both all-porcelain and porcelain crowns fused to metal are commonly used for visible front teeth, since the color can be matched to other teeth.