Chairside - Glidewell Dental Labs

Repair,
Don’t
Replace
The “Saddle Crown”
Part 2
– ARTICLE and CLINICAL PHOTOS by
Robert A. Lowe
DDS, FAGD, FICD, FADI, FACD, FIADFE
In the first part of this series on repairing an existing bridge (“Repair, Don’t
Replace – Part 1,” page 19), a case was presented where a patient fractured the
facial ceramic of a maxillary central incisor on a six-unit porcelain-fused-to-metal
bridge. The facial fracture was stress related and did not involve the exposure of
the underlying metal substructure. A successful repair was made by creating a
veneer preparation into the ceramic and placing a new porcelain veneer on top
of the affected surface.
Now, what happens if the ceramic fracture is substantially larger and involves
the exposure of the underlying metal framework? The following case will demonstrate
how, in some circumstances, the remaining porcelain can be removed
from the metal and a “saddle crown” can be fabricated and cemented over the
existing bridge.
Repair, Don’t Replace – Part 227