Broken Tooth and Infection
If you just chipped, cracked, or broken a tooth, it is best to contact your dentist as soon as possible. If you do not have a damaged tooth treated in a timely manner it can cause significant problems in your near future.
Here are some common problems that can be the result of you failing to seek proper treatment for a damaged tooth and the oral health complications.
Leaving a Broken Tooth Untreated
By choosing to not seek proper professional treatment, your damaged tooth is easily susceptible to an infection that will get worse with time. This painless infection can then gravitate to your neck and head, causing a variety of health problems. It is even possible for a simple broken tooth to create a life-threatening consequence.
There is absolutely no reason to put yourself in this situation. Make an appointment with your dentist after damaging your tooth to ensure the issue does not lead to additional problems.
Why Visiting with Your Dentist is Necessary?
Even if you have experienced no symptoms, or minor symptoms, or have noticeable pain, schedule an evaluation. An examination of a broken tooth is crucial to both protect and preserve your oral health. By avoiding timely treatment with your dentist, it can cause your pain to linger. Removing the damaged tooth might become the solution. Even though your broken tooth does not result in immediate pain, an infection will easily set in and compromise your oral health and even your overall health.
If your damaged tooth hurts, changes in color, or suddenly becomes sensitive to hot or cold, the pulp center of the tooth is now infected. You need your dentist to identify and determine if the root also has become infected as well.
The pulp is the center of the tooth that is full of blood vessels and nerves. Bacteria is always present in your mouth, day in and day out, and it always has the potential to find its way to the pulp and cause an infection. It is quite common for the living pulp tissue to die because of a simple broken tooth.
Treatment Options for A Broken Tooth
If the examination has diagnosed an infection in the pulp chamber, you will need root canal therapy to remove the infected tissue and to then seal the tooth. On occasion, a root canal may not be necessary. The treatment of repairing your broken tooth is based on the extent of the damage to the tooth and how quickly you sought out help.
Minor chips, cracks, or even breaks can be quickly and easily repaired with composite dental bonding or a dental filling. A dental crown is usually necessary for a more severely damaged tooth. If just a small amount of the protective enamel is missing, a dental filling can be an easy restoration. If there is a crack in a tooth, then your dentist can apply, sculpt, and shape dental bonding to protect the tooth.
In a worst-case scenario, your dentist may opt for extraction.
What To Do Until You Can Meet with the Dentist
You can do several things to reduce discomfort before seeing your dentist. Take an over-the-counter pain reliever, rinse your mouth with salt water, and cover the damaged tooth with sugar-free gum. Keep just softer foods in your diet and try not to bite down until you see your dentist.