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ou might not have heard that your tooth’s enamel is the hardest tissue there is in your body. Did you know that biting hard food such as ice or hard candy can make your tooth cracked or give you a chipped tooth? If you fall hard, receive a blow on your face or bite down something really hard, it can cause a tooth to chip, especially if that tooth is already damaged or suffered from tooth decay.
Caring for your teeth
Your teeth are not designed for biting hard things or items. Otherwise, it can crack or it gets chipped. If you are suffering from a chipped or broken tooth, it is recommended that you visit your dentist the as soon possible time. If you don’t, your chipped tooth can’t be saved as it can get damaged more or become infected. You have no other choice but to remove it.
What will your dentist do with your chipped tooth?
The treatment for a chipped or broken tooth will always depend on the severity of the tooth. A small chip may require a single visit and it can be repaired immediately. However, on a badly chipped or broken tooth, it may require a more expensive and longer procedure which means, you may be required to visit your dentist more than once.
Here are some treatments your dentist will do to you when you have a chipped or broken tooth:
- Dental filling or bonding. This is a treatment recommended for tooth with a small chip. For chipped tooth that happen on your front tooth, bonding is necessary – a simple procedure that uses tooth colored composite resin.
- Dental cap or crown. A large piece of tooth breaks off? Or if your tooth has suffered a lot of decay, your dentist will grind or file away part of the remaining tooth before covering it with a crown. It is done to protect your tooth and improve your tooth’s appearance. The crowns can be made from metal, porcelain fused to metal, all resin or all ceramic – the choice is yours.
- Root canal therapy. If a chip is big or the break is large, a root canal therapy is recommended. This is because the pulp of the tooth is exposed making it vulnerable to bacteria and infection. Root canal therapy will remove the dead pulp and then clean the root canal before sealing it.
- Dental veneers. For a chipped front tooth, a dental veneer can make it look whole and new again, like it doesn’t get chipped at all. A thin shell of tooth-colored porcelain or resin will cover the whole front of the tooth making our tooth appear whole and healthy.
If you have a chipped tooth, contact your dentist right away and set a schedule and you might be able to save your chipped tooth.
