If part of your tooth cracked, chipped, or came off completely, you are probably trying to answer three things at once: What exactly happened? How do you fix a broken tooth? And do you need to do something about it right now? Severe pain, swelling, bleeding that will not stop, or an injury to the face are reasons to call a dentist right away. A tooth that does not hurt can be harder to judge. You may look at it, decide the damage seems small, and hope it can wait. The problem is that you cannot see how far the break travels.
So, can we repair the tooth? Often, yes. But the type of repair depends on where the break stops and what is left for us to work with. First, protect the tooth. Then we can figure out what kind of fix it actually needs.
How To Fix a Broken Tooth Before Your Dental Visit
You cannot repair a broken tooth at home, but you can protect it until you see a dentist.
Right after a tooth breaks, your first instinct may be to inspect it, touch it with your tongue, or test whether you can still bite on it. Try not to. You cannot fix the tooth in those first few minutes, but you can protect what is still there.
Rinse your mouth gently with lukewarm water to clear the area. If a piece of the tooth has broken off, save it and bring it with you to the dentist. Then protect the tooth from more pressure by chewing on the other side of your mouth.
A cold compress held against the outside of your face can also help if swelling develops.
Do not wait for pain to decide whether the tooth needs attention. Some broken teeth hurt right away, while others cause little discomfort even when the damage extends deeper than you can see.
Can a Broken Tooth Be Fixed?
A broken tooth does not tell us much until we know where the break stops. And a repair is only as useful as the tooth supporting it.
A small chip along the edge of a front tooth may be simple enough to smooth and restore with a composite filling in one visit. Lose more of the tooth, and a filling may not have enough support to hold up to daily biting and chewing. A crown can cover the weakened tooth, brace what remains, and rebuild its shape.
The deeper the break travels, the more the treatment can change. If the nerve is involved, the tooth may need root canal treatment before we restore it. If the fracture reaches into the root or extends below the supporting bone, there may not be enough healthy tooth left to rebuild.
Vertical root fractures are especially difficult to save. A vertical fracture is a split in the root rather than a chip in the crown. These fractures are especially common in teeth that have undergone root canal treatment, though they can occur in other teeth as well. At that point, removing the tooth may be the healthier option. We can then look at replacing it with a mini dental implant rather than leaving an open space.
How We Replace Broken Teeth With Mini Dental Implants
Sometimes a broken tooth cannot be repaired and has to be removed. If we reach that point, the conversation shifts to how we can replace the missing tooth and restore the function you lost with it.
At Aesthetic Associates Centre, we often recommend mini dental implants.
A dental implant is a small post placed in the jawbone to support a dental crown. Together, the implant and dental crown replace the missing tooth, giving you a stable biting surface and filling the space left behind.
Mini implants, in particular, are much narrower than traditional implants. Their smaller size allows us to place them using a minimally invasive technique that is faster and gentler than conventional implant surgery. We disturb less of the surrounding bone and tissue, which often results in less trauma and a faster recovery.
For someone who came in with a broken tooth, a faster, gentler approach can make the restoration step feel much more manageable.
Find Out What the Break Actually Means for Your Tooth
If you broke a tooth, you probably want to know what happens next. Can we repair what is left, or has the break gone too deep? You cannot answer that by looking at the tooth alone.
When you visit Aesthetic Associates Centre, we will evaluate the break and explain what the tooth needs next.
Do not wait for pain to make the decision for you. Call us to find out how we can fix your broken tooth and protect what remains.
