Broken & Chipped Tooth Repair in Piara Waters
The longer you wait to repair your damaged tooth, the more damage is done to it.
What You Need To Know About Chipped or Broken Tooth
Having a chipped or broken tooth should be treated as soon as possible.
The longer you wait to repair your damaged tooth, the more damage is done to it. A broken tooth can cause infection of the surrounding tissue and lead to the formation of an abscess in your mouth. That’s why it’s so crucial that you get treatment for a broken or chipped tooth right away.
At Piara Waters Dental, our dentists use their years of experience and expertise when treating patients who have chipped or broken teeth. We offer emergency care for patients who need immediate attention after an accident involving their mouth or face area. Since every patient is different, we offer multiple options to choose what treatment works best for you.
Benefits of treating a
broken or chipped tooth
Restoring your confidence and self-esteem
A broken or chipped tooth can make you feel self-conscious about your appearance. Treatment can restore your smile and make you feel better about yourself.
Improving your dental health
If a broken or chipped tooth is not treated, it can lead to further damage. By seeking treatment, you can avoid further damage and ensure that your oral health is maintained.
Relieving minor discomfort
When you have a broken or chipped tooth, it can be difficult to eat or chew. Treatment can help to relieve this discomfort and allow you to continue with your daily life.
Avoiding infections
If your tooth is very loose or if you have an infection, you are at risk of developing an infection around the tooth root. Treating a broken or chipped tooth quickly can help prevent this from happening.
Dealing with embarrassment
A broken or chipped tooth can make it difficult to speak and eat in public because others may notice something wrong with your smile. Treatment can reduce any embarrassment that you feel about your appearance. You will be able to resume all normal activities without worrying about what other people think of how you look.
Preventing teeth from causing other issues
People who ignore problems with their teeth and gums usually end up with even more problems later on. They might need additional treatments to correct the damage that has been done, which can result in a large amount of money being spent on dental bills. To save the tooth and avoid more significant issues, contact an emergency dentist immediately after a tooth accident to get prompt treatment.
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08 6196 4661Why Choose Piara Waters Dental To Fix Broken or Chipped Tooth
FAQ’s About Broken or Chipped Tooth
What causes broken or chipped teeth?
- Biting on something hard
- A fall or collision while playing contact sports Accidents
- Clenching and grinding your teeth (bruxism)
- Cavities and dental decay.
- Erosion from acidic foods and drinks
What are the risks of having broken or chipped teeth?
While having a broken or chipped tooth doesn’t necessarily mean you have a dental emergency, it can indicate that something is wrong. Some of the risks associated with having a broken or chipped tooth include:
Tooth sensitivity:
If the fracture is near the nerve, you may experience various symptoms, from mild sensitivity to excruciating toothaches. You may feel more discomfort when biting puts pressure on the tooth when biting down.
Discomfort in the mouth:
The sharp fracture line on the tooth may cause you discomfort, depending on the extent of the damage. It’s also possible that a fractured tooth will irritate your tongue or cheek.
Infection:
Deep cracks and chips might enable bacteria to enter the tooth, resulting in pulp and root damage, infections, and abscesses that could require root canal therapy or tooth extraction.
You might have severe injuries:
There’s a chance that the damage to your teeth isn’t limited to a chip. The force that fractured, cracked or shattered your tooth may have also dislodged the root tips, causing the tooth to become discoloured, infected, or even fall out.
A broken tooth can be dealt with by your dentist, who will first evaluate the actual damage and, if necessary, utilise a splint to save the tooth.
How to take care of a broken or chipped tooth?
If you have a chipped or broken tooth, you should seek dental care as soon as possible. Depending on the severity of the damage, your dentist may be able to repair the tooth with a filling, crown, or bonding material. However, if the tooth has been completely fractured or knocked out of the mouth, you may need to undergo a more extensive treatment plan.
In most cases, a chipped tooth will need to be repaired by a dentist. However, you can take steps to minimise the damage until your dental practitioner can examine it.
- The jagged edge of the tooth can be protected by temporary dental filling material, such as a teabag, sugar-free gum, or dental wax.
- Do not use a chipped tooth to chew.
- If you experience pain, take an anti-inflammatory medication such as ibuprofen.
- When the chipped tooth irritates the area, put ice on the outside of your cheek.
- Protect your teeth at night by wearing a protective night guard or mouthguard while participating in sports.
- It would help if you flossed between your teeth to remove food that gets trapped between them, which can cause more pressure to be placed on your chipped tooth.
- Rub clove oil around the painful area of your gums to numb it.
What are the treatments for a broken tooth?
The treatment of a chipped tooth is determined by its position, intensity, and symptoms. It’s not a medical emergency unless it’s causing extreme pain and severely impeding eating and sleeping.
However, you should still make an appointment with your dentist as soon as possible to prevent infection or additional damage to the tooth. A tiny chip may usually be treated by simply polishing and smoothing the tooth.
Your doctor may recommend one or more of the following for more extensive chips:
Tooth reattachment
If you still have the tooth fragment, keep it moist by placing it in a glass of milk. The calcium will aid in its survival. If you don’t have any milk, place the tooth piece in your gums and avoid swallowing it.
If this happens, get to your dentist right away. They might be able to reattach the fragment to your tooth.
Bonding
Dental cement is applied to the surface of your tooth and moulded to its shape using a composite resin (plastic) or porcelain (layers of ceramic). UV lights are used to harden and dry the material. The material is dried, then reshaped until it precisely fits your teeth. Bonding typically lasts for ten years.
Porcelain veneer
The dentist will file the tooth enamel to make room for the porcelain veneer.
The procedure of creating a porcelain veneer begins with your dentist taking an impression of your tooth. The lab will create the veneer from this cast. Once done, the dentist will adhere the permanent veneer to your tooth using dental cement. When properly cared for, veneers last for 15 to 30 years.
Dental onlays
If the chip only affects a portion of your tooth, you may be advised to have a dental onlay placed directly on top of the molars. However, if damage to your tooth is significant, your dentist might recommend a full dental crown. Anesthesia may be used if the dentist needs to work on your teeth to ensure there is space for an onlay.
A dental lab will create your onlay based on a mould of your tooth that your doctor takes. The onlay will be fitted to your tooth and then cemented in place. Recent technological advances enable some dentists to mill porcelain onlays right in practice and place them on the same day.
An onlay usually lasts for decades, but your care will determine how long it will last, such as the foods you eat and how hard you chew.
Are there any How to prevent a broken or chipped tooth?potential risks to teeth whitening?
Reduce your sugar consumption.
You want to reduce the amount of sugar you consume, not just for your general health but also for your teeth.
Sugar is a favourite food of bad bacteria. Once the harmful microorganisms consume the sugar, they generate acidic waste that destroys your tooth’s enamel. This acid causes tooth decay, which harms the enamel of your teeth. If you have tooth decay, you have a higher chance of chipping a tooth.
Limit your consumption of acidic foods and drinks.
Acidic foods and beverages weaken the enamel of your teeth, resulting in tooth erosion. Your teeth will continue to deteriorate over time, leaving you more prone to cavities and chipping. If you eat and drink excessive amounts of acidic foods and beverages, your teeth won’t recover rapidly. In essence, you’re jeopardising the enamel on your teeth by wearing them down.
Avoid chewing ice or hard candy.
An enamel layer protects your teeth. Although it is strong, this layer of your teeth can still chip if you bite into hard candy or ice.
Suck on hard candy or ice instead of biting it. After eating candy, it is essential to brush your teeth to remove any sugar from your mouth.
Don’t use your teeth to open items.
Teeth are required for eating and chewing and are not tools. Thus, you should avoid using your teeth to open items and packaging. You’ll protect your teeth from damage by having the proper tool to open packages.
Get treated for acid reflux.
When you have acid reflux, stomach acid enters your mouth. Your teeth suffer from the effects of acid, even if you tolerate bouts of indigestion without treatment. Like acidic drinks and foods, the acid wears away the enamel on your teeth when it comes into contact.
Seek treatment if your teeth are grinding or clenching.
Wearing down and damaging the enamel of your teeth can occur if you suffer from bruxism, commonly called teeth grinding or clenching. It is even possible for you to chip your teeth due to your habit. The dentist can keep your top and bottom teeth from touching one another to significantly reduce your chances of fracturing a tooth.