Can A Chipped Or Broken Front Tooth Be Repaired?
Do you have a troublesome front tooth that is always in need of repair? Whether it’s a chipped tooth or a severely broken front tooth, it’s quite a common scenario. As a kid, you fell off your bike and broke one of your front teeth, or perhaps you got hit in the mouth with a basketball. At the time, it may not have seemed like a big deal, just a simple visit to the dentist, and it was fixed. But as you’ve gotten older, you may have realized how troublesome that tooth is now. It may look different from your other teeth in color or shape. Or maybe you feel like it’s a weak tooth, and you always have to be cautious with it out of fear of breaking it again.
How To Fix A Chipped Or Broken Front Tooth?
If the chip on your tooth is really small, the dentist may be able to file the tooth down to make it smooth simply. This is impossible if the chip is significant or the tooth is sensitive. If this is the case, you will need to consider one of the following options.
If you’ve only broken a corner off one of your teeth, normally a simple white filling is sufficient to repair the tooth. If the filling lasts for a couple of years, it may be best to keep getting the filling replaced as required. It will save you the hassle of more extensive treatment, which can also be much more pricey.
Depending on how your teeth bite together, the filling may fall off in some people. If the filling is constantly falling out within months, you may consider placing a porcelain veneer or crown on the tooth. Porcelain is much stronger and more natural-looking than a white filling and tends to have a longer lifespan.
If most of your tooth has broken away, a crown may be required to repair the tooth. A crown, or cap, is made of porcelain, covers the whole tooth, and helps hold it together. If the tooth is broken close to the gum line, the tooth may also require a root canal treatment before a crown can be placed.
Problems With Fixing A Broken Front Tooth
Dentists often say that fixing front teeth is one of the hardest things about their job. It’s difficult to fix a single front tooth and make it look as good as the neighboring teeth. Dental materials are of an exceptionally high quality these days, but unfortunately, nothing is as good as your natural teeth.
The problem with repairing a front tooth lies in matching the color to the teeth on either side of the broken tooth. Dental materials reflect light differently than natural teeth, which may make the color of the teeth appear a little different depending on the light. Teeth also have different colors, from the gum to the tip of the tooth. This color gradient is also very difficult for dentists to achieve.
Repairs on front teeth can also be very fragile. No matter how well the tooth is repaired, it is recommended that you always treat the tooth with care. Avoid eating hard, or sticky food with the tooth to avoid placing unnecessary force on it can help the repair last much longer.
The worst-case scenario for a broken front tooth is if the break goes below the gum and cannot be repaired. The tooth would need to be removed and replaced with a dental implant, bridge, or denture.
Conclusion
All dental problems are unique, and your dentist would have recommended treatment based on your particular mouth. Whether that is a filling, veneer, or crown depends on how your tooth is broken. If the tooth is kept clean and care is taken not to eat hard or sticky food on it, the repair should last for quite a long time.
