Do you have a dental crown in your smile? This ceramic cap is a highly beneficial dental solution that restores the structure, health, and appearance of a damaged tooth. Its durable material and resilient seal over the tooth’s surface ensure long-lasting protection.
Though built to withstand everyday wear and tear, a crown is not indestructible. Under high amounts of pressure, a crown might dislodge, crack, or break. If this occurs, then the underlying vulnerable tooth could be in significant danger of further harm.
You will need to take urgent action in the wake of this damage to your dental work. You can react more swiftly in the event of this dental emergency when you know what to do ahead of this incident. Read on to find the steps you should take to repair a broken dental crown.
Call Your Dentist Right Away
If you damage a dental crown, the first step you should take is to call your dentist. You may think that you can find a way to secure the crown on your own. But many at-home efforts to fix a broken crown can actually make the problem worse.
Your dentist will want to know what happened and get you the care that you need to restore the health of your crown and the rest of your smile. They can also offer advice over the phone for immediate actions you can take. This can include ways to relieve pain or discomfort that the damaged dental fixture might cause for you.
Attend an Urgent Dentist Appointment
Your dentist will likely ask you to come to their office for an urgent appointment in order to fix a broken dental crown. Make sure you bring the crown with you to the appointment.
The dentist will examine the crown, the affected tooth, and the rest of your mouth for signs of potential damage. If the crown is otherwise intact, they can place the cap back over the tooth and seal it into place once again. If the crown sustained too much damage, the dentist may need to build a new one.
The dentist can give you a temporary crown to protect your tooth while a new permanent crown is being made. You will need to return to your dentist’s office to receive this crown once it is ready.
Reduce Your Risk of Further Dental Crown Damage
When your dental crown is safely returned to your tooth, you want to make sure that this damage does not happen again. You cannot avoid all accidents, but you can address certain risk factors. For instance, try not to bite down on hard items, like ice or the end of a pen. Chewing these objects generates large amounts of pressure that could damage your dental work.
Practice good oral hygiene too. Brushing twice a day, flossing daily, and attending routine teeth cleanings will help you avoid tooth decay and other dental problems. These issues could alter your teeth to the point a crown cannot fit properly. So avoid these concerns to preserve your crown.