Are Temporary Crowns a Preview of the Final Crowns?

First of all I would agree with Dr. Timmerman.  Not only do I do a diagnostic wax up for all "cosmetic" cases, many times I will have the lab fabricate the temporary crowns based off the wax up.  Using a diagnostic wax up is going to allow you to view how your teeth should look and when you are satisfied you can give the go ahead.  I try to make as cosmetic a temporary as I can that way I know the gums will heal properly and the outcome will be as aesthetic as possible.  

When doing cosmetic work, cheaper is not always better...

Dentists trained in cosmetics (not all are) almost always will do a diagnostic wax up so the temporaries will be a preview to the final smile, but not ALL dentists do this.  If they don't we call this "prep and pray", the dentist just prays that the final outcome will make the patient happy.  Sometimes it works.

Be sure to find an office that does a diagnostic wax up.  It may cost a little more, but it is MUCH cheaper than having the work done over again.

Not all dentists are equal.  Not all labs are equal.  Better dentists use better labs, and their fees usually reflect this.

In my office we would plan the case out specifically so you would know what the final result would look like.  We would take a impression which we would send to our dental lab and a waxup would be done of what we think we could achieve.  We would prepare your teeth and place a temp that looks like the waxup which when wearing it you would approve the result and the lab would make the final crowns the same way.  You need to see someone who plans the case out or you may be disappointed with the result

You need to speak to dentist regarding concerns. A pre treatment wax up should be used to fabricate temporaries. Obviously shape and color will not be 100% exact to final restorations but they should be close. A good cosmetic dentist will make a temporary crown that would be undetected by anyone but you and him/her.

To get a fantastic result for your new front crowns, make sure you have the right cosmetic dentist. A great cosmetic dentist will first listen to what you want to improve from your current crowns. He will then make a simulation of the proposed changes, these are usually the template for the new temporaries.

When done with finesse, the new temporaries ought to be a representation of your new and final look. After the temporaries go on, then you have another opportunity to discuss how you like them with your dentist. Afterwards, the dentist can communicate with their ceramic lab to add in even more features to make your new smile amazing.

You need to have a lot of confidence BEFORE you start anything with your new crowns. 

Your case should be waxed up to desired outcome prior to touching you teeth (or old crowns). The wax up is the blue print to the final outcome. So you can with-in limits, modify the shape and size of the teeth and the bite in the wax up.

You then make a guide to transfer the information from the wax-up to the mouth so that the temporaries will look like the wax up. Now you and the dentist can see them and determine if this is what you want. You can still modify the tempories and then take an impression of the temporaries so the lab can use them as a guide for the finals. The temporaries are a trial run for the finals, in form and function.

Yes, they should be done as a bridge since it would take far too long to make them individually and they will stay in place better.

Good luck

Dr. T

Temporaries are usually based on your actual teeth (that is why the impressions are taken before the preparation of your teeth). The final crown will not look like your temporary, The final crowns will be fine. Do not worry about how your temporaries look like now because the final outcome will look just fine.