How to Fix a Chipped Tooth

A chipped denticle is a cracked, broken, or fractured tooth. Often, pain and discomfort will accompany chipping, making it necessary to seek immediate medical attention. Chipping can occur if you experience a fall or bite too hard on something.
Its common causes include the following four factors.

• Teeth grinding at night while asleep
• Trauma to the face
• Large fillings that deteriorate with time
• Cavities

Besides causing pain and discomfort, chipped teeth are susceptible to decay and infection. The tiny openings occasioned by damage to the enamel can allow bacteria to find its way to the pulp. If left unchecked, this can lead to abscesses, making it necessary to fix the chipped tooth.

Assessing the Damage

Tooth enamel is built to last. In fact, the enamel is the hardest substance in the human body. However, the enamel also has its limitations. A chip can occur due to age and lifestyle habits such as ice and gum chewing.
Unfortunately, it may prove challenging to identify a cracked tooth at home, as fractures don’t always present symptoms. In some cases, these vertical hairline cracks may prove invisible to the naked eye. However, there are five warning signs which may indicate the presence of a chip.

1. Increased Sensitivity: You may experience pain when taking hot or cold drinks and foods. The same holds when eating sour, sweet, or sticky foods. This is a sign of a cracked tooth.
2. Pain when Chewing or Biting: Pain or discomfort when eating is perhaps the best indicator of chipping.
3. Infection: Chipping can lead to an infection in the area around the affected tooth and in the gum line. The infection will appear in the form of a tiny bump.
4. Lack of Constant Pain: Unlike an abscess, the pain that comes with chipping is sporadic. If it comes and goes, the chances are that your tooth is fractured.
5. No Visible Signs: Signs of decay are present when battling a cavity. However, if you’re experiencing pain but can’t find any noticeable sign, it could mean you have a chipped tooth.

Prompt treatment is crucial when you’ve a fractured tooth. Delaying treatment will cause the situation to deteriorate, causing tooth loss. We recommend you bring your child to our facility for treatment if they’re experiencing pain due to chipping.

Dental Solutions for Chipped Teeth

Several solutions are available to remedy chipped teeth. The recommendation we make will typically depend on the location and severity of your chip. In a nutshell, we can recommend four main solutions.

• Dental Bonding: Our team will use plastic resin to fill in the fracture
• Dental Veneers: It refers to a thin porcelain cover that goes to the front of your tooth
• Dental Crowns: These are ceramic caps that we can fit over the cracked teeth
• Dental Implants: It involves removing the affected tooth and replacing it with an implant

Here’s a more detailed look into each of these solutions.

Dental Bonding

Dental/composite bonding is an excellent way to repair decayed, chipped, cracked, misshapen, and discolored teeth. A composite bond can last up to a decade and doesn’t require anesthesia. Your dentist will only use anesthesia if they’re dealing with a cavity.
The first step is to roughen the cracked tooth and apply a conditioning liquid. Our dentist will follow this up with applying putty, and then molding and smoothening it. After smoothening, we will need to use an ultraviolet light to help harden your composite.
The final step is shaping and polishing of the composite to ensure it matches the other teeth.

Advantages

Composite bonding has several advantages, which include:

• We can place them on the same day
• You can easily care for a tooth that has bonding on it
• The mold is non-invasive
• It looks natural

Its benefits revolve around its easy placement and care.

Disadvantages

While its pros are obvious, bonding also has its downsides. These include:

• It’s fragile as it only covers a small part of the cracked tooth
• Crowns generally last longer than composite molds

Its cons all have to do with durability and longevity.

Dental Veneers

If the crack is a little big, our dentist may recommend veneers. Bonding works well with small chips, while veneers are best for bigger chips. Installing a dental veneer involves placing a cover at the front of the chipped tooth.

Before we can attach it, the first thing we will do is to smooth away some of the enamel in the cracked tooth. We do this to create room for the veneer. But worry not, as this smoothening will only take away less than one millimeter of your enamel.

The next step is to create an impression of your tooth and send it to our labs to have the veneer created. Depending on your preference, we can install a temporary veneer as we await the permanent one. Once ready, we will bond the permanent veneer to your tooth.

Are You a Good Candidate for Dental Veneers?

With regards to whether you’re a good candidate, you can get veneers if you have healthy teeth with healthy enamel. It also helps if you’ve good oral hygiene practices.

Dental Crowns

If you have pain when drinking or chewing food, you may need a dental crown. This is a restorative cap that covers your affected tooth while enhancing its appearance. A crown acts as a cover for the tooth, preventing it from getting lost when chewing food.
Our procedure for placing dental crowns on chipped teeth is as follows:

• We will administer anesthesia to prevent pain during the procedure.
• Our dentist will prepare the tooth. This may involve removing some of its structures
• After preparation, we will take impression to create a beautiful porcelain crown
• Once the permanent crown is ready, our technicians will cement it to the remaining tooth structure

How to Care for Dental Crowns

Installing the crown is the first step to restoring your beautiful smile. You still need to care for it to ensure it remains in good condition. For this, we advise you to follow these steps:

• Use a dentist recommended toothpaste to brush your teeth at least twice a day
• Avoid eating chewy, crunchy, or hard foods
• Floss your teeth once a day
• Get regular dental exams and cleanings

A dental crown can last for between five and fifteen years with proper care and maintenance.

Dental Implants

If the chipping extends below your gum line, it means we can no longer save your tooth. For this, you’ll need an extraction where our dentist will pull out the chipped tooth. Once pulled, you can consult with the dentist about getting an implant.
We design the implants to take the place of the recently pulled tooth. The implant will act as the root of your new tooth. Our dental technician will place it securely in your jawbone to guarantee a lasting fit.

Procedure for a Dental Implant

It takes several weeks to get an implant. From the moment you decide to go ahead with this procedure, these are the steps we will follow.

• Since we pulled out your natural root, we must place biocompatible titanium screws into your jaw to serve as the new root.
• A few days will need to pass to enable the bone to fuse with the screws. We do this to allow for a tight, long-lasting foundation.
• You’ll need to come to our offices after 12 to 16 weeks for an impression. Our dentists will also use this time to confirm that healing is proceeding normally.
• During another session, we will install the permanent crown and confirm that it’s a secure fit.

For patients who don’t have enough bone to hold the implants, we may need to perform a grafting procedure.

Candidacy and Considerations for Dental Implants

Before recommending dental implants as a solution to chipped teeth, we must consider several factors. Examples include commitment to oral hygiene, jawbone health, systemic health conditions, and lifestyle habits.

Preventing Future Chips

Chipping is painful and can lead to dental complications if left unchecked. Luckily, knowing how to care for your teeth can prevent chipping and other oral health problems. The five tips below can assist in preventing future chips.

1. Avoid chewing on items that are too hard. Try to steer clear of food items such as popcorn kernels, olive pits, and hard candy.
2. Seek treatment for acid reflux. Untreated acid reflux can cause the acid present in the stomach to find its way back to your mouth. This stomach acid can cause the enamel to wear away.
3. Stop using your teeth as an opener. Desist from using your teeth to open bottles and cans, as this can lead to unwanted damage.
4. Get enough vitamins and minerals. Consuming enough vitamin D, magnesium, and calcium can help with the remineralization process.
5. Protect your teeth when playing contact sports. A mouth guard can assist in protecting your teeth from trauma when in the field.

Conclusion and Why Luna Pediatric Dentistry

When a chip occurs, it may take a while to determine the extent of the damage. Looking out for signs of pain when chewing and increased sensitivity can help with a diagnosis. While at it, remember not all chips are the same, and that you need to seek immediate dental care.
We at Luna Pediatric Dentistry treat patients the same way we want to be treated. Our staff is committed to meeting your dental health needs and surpassing your expectations. You can come to us for early dental care, restorative, and emergency dental services.
To learn more about our services and membership benefits, please call (713) 360-0850.