How a General Dentist Can Repair a Damaged Tooth

A general dentist knows the importance of a tooth’s appearance. Tooth damage can change the way your tooth looks. Decay, accidents, medications, and conditions can cause tooth damage. Repairing the tooth is vital for your oral and general health. If you want to know how a general dentist can restore your damaged dentition, here are the details.

Dental veneers

These are popular restorations. Veneers are permanent solutions to tooth imperfections. The general dentist can match the thin porcelain or composite shells to the neighboring natural teeth. Stained and broken teeth can have a brand-new look again with these restorations. Most dentists place veneers on the front teeth.

Dental bonding

Years of chewing can result in the appearance of craze lines. Biting into a hard substance can also cause the tooth to crack or chip. The general dentist will offer dental bonding if the cracks are superficial. Composite resin is the material for this type of restoration. It matches the color of natural teeth.

Root canal

A tooth with a deep crack has severe damage. The crack may have reached the deeper part of the tooth, which is the pulp. Pain when eating or drinking something hot or cold will tell the general dentist how deep the crack is. For a crack reaching the pulp, the dentist will perform a root canal.

This procedure involves removing the pulp of the affected tooth. The dentist will clean out and disinfect the inside of the tooth. Then, the dentist will fill the tooth with gutta-percha. The treated tooth needs proper support. A dental crown often keeps the tooth together and protects it from future damage.

Dental crowns

Chewing surfaces of the teeth can also experience damage. The cusps of these teeth can crack or even break off. The damage does not hurt. Even so, the tooth’s protection weakens. The general dentist can use a dental crown or cap to place over a flat chewing dental surface. This will protect the tooth and restore its appearance.

The general dentist will shave off a significant amount of healthy tooth structure. This will make sure the dental crowns fit over the tooth. The dentist will take the impression of the patient’s filed tooth to create the custom-fit crown. Then, the dentist will cement the permanent crown once it is ready.

Dental implants

A crack can reach below the gumline. For this, the general dentist will need to extract the tooth. There is no possible way to treat the crack in the dental roots anymore. The extraction must happen to prevent more complicated problems.

The dentist will then drill implant holes into the patient’s jawbone. Placing the titanium rods will follow. Osseointegration happens next. This will happen for four to six months. Connecting the abutment and dental crowns will follow.