If only a small piece of tooth enamel has been removed, your dentist can repair the damage with a filling. If the repair is done to a. If the repair is on a front tooth or can be seen when you smile, your dentist will likely use a procedure called bonding, which uses a tooth-colored composite resin. Small chips can be repaired with dental fillings or joints, depending on where the chip is located.
If the enamel has come off from a posterior tooth, then a filling will be the most likely solution. However, if the chip is visible when you smile, cosmetic bonding of tooth color may be the best solution. Fixing chips of this size is very easy. Our Mesa dentist can do it for you in seconds and without anesthesia.
To repair a small chip, Dr. Huynh will perform a procedure called enamel plasty, which means we simply smooth the area with a small polishing tool. Performing this procedure is safe and does not harm the tooth at all, because it does not pass the enamel (the outermost surface of the tooth). The first tool in the dentist's repair cheat kit is dental bonding.
Here at Adelaide Dental, we generally suggest bonding if you have a very small splinter, for example, if a small piece of tooth enamel has come off. Bonding involves the use of a tooth-colored composite resin, which is molded onto the healthy area of the tooth to fill the chip and create a smooth repair. The joint is fixed to the tooth after the tooth undergoes an “etching” process to create a rough surface to which the joint adheres. If it is a minor crack that only affects the outer white surface of the tooth, it may not need treatment or just light polishing of the area to remove rough spots.
If a small piece of enamel was removed, your dentist will likely choose to repair the chipped tooth by applying a filling or bonding. Bonding is a simple procedure that can often be performed without numbing and involves the use of a tooth-colored composite resin. The first step is to engrave the tooth surface with a liquid or gel material that gives the resin something to bond with. The dentist then applies the resin to the tooth with adhesive material and shapes it to look like a natural tooth and then illuminates with ultraviolet light to harden the resin.
This is a great solution for small chips, which, with proper care, should last a decade or more. If you are suffering from a chipped, broken, or fractured tooth, it is important that you visit your local dentist as soon as possible. Dental fillings are a common way to repair a fractured tooth or decay, especially if it is a chipped molar or posterior tooth that is not very visible. Falling, getting hit in the face, or biting something hard, especially if a tooth is already decayed, can cause a tooth to chip or break.
If most of your tooth breaks but the roof remains intact, your dentist might recommend root canal treatment. For medium-sized repairs that won't stay in place or large chips that have compromised your tooth by more than 50%, then you will need to undergo a procedure known as a dental crown. During the second visit, usually 2 to 3 weeks later, the dentist will remove the temporary crown and check the perm's fit before cementing it permanently in place. Crowns typically require two visits to the dentist's office: the first to create the mold for the crowns and the second to cement it in place.
Depending on the type of damage to your tooth, the dentist will determine different treatment options. In the meantime, take an over-the-counter medication, such as ibuprofen, to reduce pain and inflammation, apply ice to the affected area on the outside of the cheek or face, and consider using temporary dental bonding material or dental wax to cover the jagged edge of the tooth and prevent irritation of the tongue and gums until can go to a dentist to have your tooth repaired. Also, keep in mind that if you have broken or chipped a tooth before, that tooth will be more vulnerable and more likely to break in the future, even after you have repaired it, so you'll want to treat that tooth with special care. If a fracture or splinter has left a large part of the tooth missing, your dentist may use a filling material to build the tooth and support the crown.
In the meantime, there are some steps you can take to minimize pain and reduce the chances of further injury to the tooth until you can see a dentist. . .
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