According to AAE, more than five million teeth are knocked out every year. But losing a tooth doesn't necessarily mean it's lost forever. With proper dental care, you can save your knocked-out or avulsed tooth. So, what should you do after your tooth is knocked out?
How to preserve a knocked-out tooth
Whether it's due to injury, trauma, or accident, your knocked-out tooth can be replanted and last for a lifetime. But first, you have to salvage the avulsed tooth. Here is a step-by-step guide to help you preserve a knocked-out:
Handle with care:
Make sure your hands are clean before handling a knocked-out tooth.
Pick up the tooth carefully by holding its crown.
Don't touch the root.
Rinse the tooth: You can rinse your knocked-out tooth under a gentle stream of water. Hold the tooth by the crown to avoid damaging the roots. Milk can also remove dirt particles. Don't wipe the tooth after rinsing it.
Preserve the tooth: Knocked-out teeth should be stored in a moist and safe place. You can put the tooth in a glass of milk or water. Another option is to keep it in your mouth, between the cheek and gum, or beneath the tongue. But young children can swallow anything placed in their mouth. To preserve a baby tooth, put it in a cup with their saliva. You can also use a tooth-saving storage device to store knocked-out teeth.
Make sure you keep the tooth moist at all times and visit your dentist as soon as possible.
Can dentists fix knocked-out teeth?
Your Toronto dentist can reimplant knocked-out teeth into your jaw. They'll perform a root canal on the avulsed teeth before reimplanting them in the socket. Once the tooth is in place, your jawbone will reattach to its root. Get to the dentist within 30 minutes to ensure a high success rate.
If your knocked-out tooth is damaged, your dentist can recommend a dental implant to replace it. Dental implants look, feel, and function like natural teeth. You can search "dental implants near me" to find the best replacement teeth to restore your smile.
What to do if you break a tooth
If you break a tooth, rinse your mouth with warm water to eradicate debris. Next, use a cold compress on the affected area to reduce swelling. Then, take pain relievers to manage the pain. Whether your tooth is broken or cracked, visit a dentist as soon as possible.
Your dentist will examine your cracked or broken tooth using CBCT to determine the extent of the damage. Then, they'll recommend the best treatment option to fix it.
Root canals: If the tooth's crown is broken, you may need a root canal to restore its structure. Your dentist can perform a root canal to remove infected pulp in damaged teeth.
Dental fillings: This restorative dental procedure uses a filling material to repair broken or cracked teeth. Dental fillings can also address dental decay and cavities.
Dental implants: You'll need a dental implant if your split tooth is irreparable. Implantation is a surgical procedure performed by oral surgeons to replace badly damaged teeth. Not everyone is eligible for dental implants. You may need bone grafting to address bone loss before implantation.
Your dentist can also use dental bonding, porcelain veneers, and dental crowns to fix cracked or broken teeth.
How to fix a chipped tooth
Although a chipped tooth doesn't qualify as a dental emergency, you'll still need to visit a dentist to fix it. Dentists use several cosmetic dental procedures to restore chipped teeth.
Porcelain veneers: Dental veneers are super-thin porcelain shells that cover defects on the front side of teeth—the best porcelain veneers in Toronto mimic natural teeth, ideal for fixing a chipped front tooth.
Dental bonding: This cosmetic dental procedure uses tooth-coloured composite resins to repair damaged teeth. The bonding material is applied to your tooth's surface to fill in the chips. As a result, it looks like natural teeth when it cures. Your Toronto dentist can also recommend dental bonding to restore cracked, broken, or split teeth.
Porcelain crowns: Dental crowns are tooth-shaped caps that encase the entire tooth. This cosmetic dental procedure can fix a chipped tooth. Dentists use different types of crowns to improve the size, shape, and colour of teeth.
What is the cost of repairing a chipped tooth?
Chipped tooth repair cost varies depending on cosmetic dental procedures used by the dentist. The best porcelain veneers and crowns cost around $1200-$1500 per tooth. Tooth bonding ranges from $500 to $1000 per tooth. The extent of the damage can increase the chipped-tooth repair cost.
Restoring a broken tooth will cost more than fixing a small chip. You may need a root canal or dental filling if the chip or crack extends into the pulp. Additional restorations will reflect on the total chipped-tooth repair cost.
Why Toronto Smile Design - Yorkville Dental?
Dr. Johnson Ozgur is a Toronto Dentist with a Master's Degree in Oral Surgery. He has years of experience in General and Cosmetic Dentistry. Whether your dental emergency is broken, chipped, or infected teeth, Dr. Johnson should be your first call. He is experienced in porcelain veneers, dental implants, root canals, dental crowns, and more. For professional emergency dental care, contact us today!
