Xrays necessary for porcelain crown placement

[Christine92124]

I'm 62 and have had gold crowns over the years.  I just had a porcelain crown (my first) installed on an upper molar and with the crown just sitting in place, I was told I needed an xray to see if everything "seated" properly before glueing.  I've made an effort all my life to limit dental xrays if not completely necessary.  I've never had an xray to permanently glue a crown in place but I reluctantly agreed.  Is this normally done now?  They said they "always do that" - however a porcelain molar crown my husband got from them about 4-5 years ago, they didn't do a 'placement' xray.  When I asked about that, they replied "well, someone must have forgotten to do it".

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

I would say that it isn't necessary but it is frequently done in outside practice.  Generally they want to verify that the crown is sitting properly in the mouth and also serves as a documented record of the placement.  

I never actually took x-rays to check the placement of crowns until I started to work for certain doctors that would do it.  In school and as a resident, we used other materials to verify the seating of the crown.

As for the radiation exposure, it is very minimal and I would say that the risks of radiation vs the benefits of seeing the proper fit of the crown would favor taking the x-ray.  The radiation exposure for a single x-ray is very minimal and as long as lead apron is placed, you should be perfectly safe.

[simpleman1]

Different doctors have different approaches to the same end results. Taking an X-ray(bitewing) can tell if there are any overhangs/margins and contacts of the crown with the adjacent teeth. I would say its not mandatory but its a good practise specially to have a baseline record. Also just for information...taking a full-mouth X-rays(14 plus) is usually equal to one day sun exposure if its spent outdoor with digital X-rays even less than that.