The BAARD Institute

The Overlay - also known as the partial coverage crown, “crown-lay”, just “onlay” to some prosthodontists, occlusal veneer etc….

It is the “minimally invasive” and/or “conservative” adhesive alternative to the friction fit “Full Coverage Crown” when there is enough health tooth structure to support it….

I previously made a video discussing the Overlay vs the “Crown” & these photos should serve as good illustrations as to the amount of tissue preserved and/or removed…..

That said - this isn’t the “only” way to prep for an Overlay NOR is it the most conservative Overlay - but I would say this is my go to, one of the most common non-retentive designs, and the one I teach at The BAARD Institute (in addition to other variations)…..

Visually it is easily observed that “less” of the sensitive & more challenging to bond inner tooth “dentin” is exposed vs crown preparation - this results in much less chance for post-operative sensitivity, pupal complications, & easier adhesive management from Prep Design alone…..

While the time to “Prep” both the crown and overlay can be comparable - there is added time for isolation & bonding for the Overlay that is not required of the “friction fit” crown… this and other choices weigh on the operators decision making process as highlighted in my previous video….

What shouldn’t be disputed is the evidence based longevity of the bonded Overlay in systematic reviews & meta-analysis- while we all marvel at the 50 year old gold crown let’s not forget the insurance data that posits 5-6 years as the average survival of “Crowns” in the field….. this isn’t an attack on Crowns but an attack on the false dichotomies & presuppositions smuggled into a lot of our dental discourse especially “Survivor Bias” vs Failures - from a long term therapeutic standpoint it is always more important to look at the average failure vs the lone long term survivor