Dental Posts

A post is an element used for tooth restoration. Dental posts can be broadly divided into two types:

• posts that the dentist can place in a single visit;
• posts that are custom-made for each tooth and placed in two visits.

A post consists of two parts:

• the root part (enters the tooth canal and serves as a reinforcing element);
• the supra-root part (this is a post and core, on which a crown is placed).

To place a post of any type, it is necessary to first perform endodontic treatment – to fill the canals.

Canal filling is necessary for:

• eliminating pain;
• extending the service life of the tooth root;
• eliminating the possibility of infection;
• using the canal to integrate the post into the tooth;
• reinforcing the canal.

Posts that can be placed at the clinic in a single visit:

• anchor post (available with or without threading, most commonly made of palladium);
• fiberglass post (made from transparent material, suitable for reconstruction of front teeth, used only in single-root teeth).

Posts (post and cores) manufactured in laboratories:

• chrome-cobalt post;
• zirconium dioxide post;
• BioHPP post (biocompatible polymer);
• titanium post.

A post for a multi-root tooth is called a post and core. It is a single structure that enters several canals and is manufactured in a laboratory as a custom order. Such dental posts are placed over several visits.

Stages of post and core placement

Some doctors, even in Kyiv clinics, attempt to build up a tooth on a post – that is, photopolymer material is built up around the post, from which a tooth crown is essentially sculpted. But such structures do not last long and look aesthetically unappealing. Therefore, placing a tooth on a post automatically implies the need for prosthetics – the use of a crown. Build-up is possible only in rare cases and as a temporary measure.

A direct indication for post placement is destruction of the crown part of the tooth by 70% or more, or a horizontal tooth fracture. With a healthy root, such a tooth can be restored using a post and crown.

The main contraindications are related to the condition of the root. If its walls are too thin, the post will not fit into the tooth root or will destroy it. It is also impossible to use a post in cases of chronic periodontitis (inflammation) of the root, or incomplete endodontic treatment (the canal has not been treated or has been treated incompletely).

Depending on the specific clinical situation, the cost of tooth build-up on a post may vary somewhat.

A standard dental post, which is placed directly in the chair in a single visit, will cost less. Therefore, the overall service price will be somewhat lower.

If it concerns the fabrication of a custom post, the service price will include:

• the cost of the post;
• the cost of laboratory work;
• the cost of the dentist’s work;
• the cost of the crown.

It is important to understand that a post tooth is not an implant. The main difference is that a post tooth implies an artificial neck of the tooth, while an implant implies an artificial root. The similarity of the technologies lies only in the fact that both cases use an artificial crown. The price of a dental post will be much lower than that of an implant.

Despite the fact that the technology of using posts remains quite popular, it can already be considered outdated. In most cases, the use of posts is an unjustified and risky endeavor that will inevitably lead to the need for implantation.

Among the most significant disadvantages of using posts are the following:

1. Incorrect post placement in 100% of cases leads to root loss. The patient will be forced to resort to implantation, after all the effort, money, and time spent.
2. Quite often, the post and core works not as a reinforcing (strengthening) element, but as a wedge that splits the root under chewing load. In this case as well, the root will have to be removed and an implant placed.
3. The service life of a post in a tooth root is very difficult to predict, so the patient risks time and money with an uncertain outcome. Meanwhile, Dr. Osadchiy’s Dental Clinic provides a lifetime guarantee on implantation.

Patients should also understand that if a crown (tooth) on a post is placed and something happens to the structure, it will be impossible to save the crown. Ultimately, the patient will pay for the crown twice: during post integration and during implantation.