Sir, I would like to bring an extremely unusual case to the notice of your esteemed readers. A 36-year-old male airline cabin crew member attended for an emergency consultation following an incident at breakfast in the hotel in which he had been staying in Dundee. Having had a selection of cooked items from the buffet, he then indulged in toast with marmalade of the famous local variety from a small jar, the type of which is typical in such venues.

Very unusually he did not notice that the top of the pot had fallen on to the toast with the layer of preserve (thick cut, orange) and, on biting down hard, the lid was totally jammed (no pun intended) onto his lower right first permanent molar.

On examination the metal top had sealed itself perfectly around the tooth with an excellent cervical seal and the force had ensured that the biting surface was perfectly sculpted and in balanced occlusion.

Initially I assumed that the patient wanted the offending lid removed but, far from it, he was delighted with the restoration as it resembled a gold crown which would otherwise have cost him a considerable sum. Reassured that the resulting seal would ensure that any residual marmalade would be neutralised and unlikely to initiate caries he thanked me and flew off for destinations unknown.

Thinking that fellow readers anywhere in the world may in future come across this young man, I felt it best to alert the international community to the existence of this, the first ever Long Haul Crown technique.

Note to readers

These letters have been created for the entertainment of readers in the spirit of seasonal good humour and, on the whole, are entirely fictional.