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Although the layer covering your teeth, called enamel, is the body’s toughest and most mineralized tissue, its power has a limit. A tooth can break or chip as a result of falling, being struck in the face, or biting down on something hard, especially if the tooth already has some decay. Don’t freak out if you find out you have a broken or chipped tooth. Your dentist has a lot of options for fixing it.
How to Take Care of a Broken Tooth
See your dentist right away if your tooth is fractured, chipped, or broken to prevent the risk of further damage and eventual tooth loss.
Try the home-care techniques mentioned below:
If the victim is unconscious or has a significant injury, dial 911.
1. Gather teeth or tooth fragments.
- Carefully handle teeth to avoid damage that can inhibit reimplantation.
- Just the tooth’s crown, or top, should be touched. Do not make contact with the tooth’s root.
- If there is debris or foreign substance on the tooth, rinse it gently in a bowl of lukewarm water for no longer than 10 seconds. To get rid of dirt, don’t scrub, scrape, or use alcohol.
2. Replace or Keep Teeth
Use warm water to rinse mouth
Reinsert permanent teeth, if possible, into their proper sockets, and have the person bite down on a piece of gauze to keep the teeth in place.
Baby teeth, broken teeth, and permanent teeth that can’t be reinserted should be kept in whole milk or between your cheek and gum to avoid drying out.
Utilize sterile gauze or cloth to stop bleeding.
Apply a cool compress for discomfort and swelling. Take ibuprofen or acetaminophen for pain.
A fractured tooth may need treatment depending on the extent of the trauma. If a small part of tooth is damaged, the repair can mostly be done in just one office visit. A severely traumatised tooth requires a more invasive treatment.
Here are a few techniques your dentist may use to fix your cracked or fractured tooth.
Dental Bonding vs. Filling
Your dentist will probably utilise a technique called bonding, which makes use of tooth-colored composite resin, if the repair is to a front tooth or can be seen when you smile.
Bonding is typically a brief operation that doesn’t numb the teeth. The dentist will initially use a liquid or gel to roughen the tooth’s surface so that the bonding material will attach to it. After coating the tooth with an adhesive solution, the dentist will next apply a resin that is tooth-colored. The dental professional uses an ultraviolet laser to solidify the bonding substance after shaping it.
Dental Crown Or Cap
If a significant part of the tooth has broken off or the tooth has a lot of decay, the dentist may grind or file away some of the remaining tooth before covering it with a crown, a tooth-shaped cap that is intended to protect the tooth and improve its appearance. Metal, ceramic, or porcelain bonded to metal are materials typically used for permanent crowns. Different kinds offer various advantages. The strongest crowns are made of all metal.
Crowns made of resin and porcelain can be made to resemble real teeth very well. If the entire top of the tooth is broken off but the root is still present, the dentist or endodontist may do root canal therapy, implant a pin or a post in the canal, and then construct enough of a framework on which a crown can be built. The dentist can then attach the crown to the pin or post-retained restoration.
The crown is manufactured in a lab using the imprints that were sent there. Your dentist might put in a temporary crown consisting of plastic or thin metal in the interim.
Your dentist will remove the temporary crown and assess the fit of the permanent one during the second appointment, which usually happens two to three weeks later, before permanently cementing it in place.
Usually two to three weeks after the initial session, your dentist will remove the temporary crown and evaluate the permanent one’s fit before firmly cementing it in place.
Veneers For Teeth
A front tooth that has been broken or chipped might appear whole and healthy again with the help of a dental veneer. The entire front of the tooth is covered by a thin, tooth-colored porcelain or resin composite veneer, with a bigger area to cover the tooth’s broken area. To prepare your tooth, your dentist will scrape upto 1.2 millimetres of enamel off of its surface. The dental professional will next make an impression of the tooth, which will be sent to a dental laboratory to be used in the fabrication of the veneer. When the veneer is ready, which is often a week or two later, you will need to make another appointment with the dentist to have it done.
Your dentist will use a liquid to etch the tooth’s surface in order to roughen it up before placing the veneer. The veneer is then attached to the prepared tooth by the dentist using a specific cement. Your dentist will use a special light to activate chemicals in the cement after the veneer is in place so that it hardens rapidly.
Endodontic Therapy
Bacteria from the mouth can enter and infect the pulp of a tooth if a chip or break is large enough to expose the pulp, which is the centre of the tooth and contains nerves and blood vessels. Your tooth may be damaged or unhealthy if it hurts, changes colour, or is sensitive to heat.
The tooth may become infected and need to be extracted if the dead pulp tissue is left behind. In root canal therapy, the dead pulp is taken out, the root canal is cleaned, and finally the root canal is sealed.
The majority of root canal procedures don’t hurt any worse than getting a cavity filled. To safeguard the now-weakened tooth, the remaining tooth must typically be capped with a crown.
Conclusion
When teeth are knocked out, visit a dentist right soon or go to the emergency department. Bring your missing teeth or tooth fragments with you. You need to see a dentist even if the teeth have been replaced.
Contact a dentist at Palm Tree Dental if your teeth are cracked or broken.