When Cracked Teeth Can Become a Serious Dental Emergency

A cracked tooth is the most common dental problem, often caused by injury, decay, or grinding. Not all cracked teeth qualify as a dental emergency, but some may cause severe complications if left untreated.

This blog post will identify the various types of cracked teeth, the signs and symptoms of a cracked tooth, and even when a cracked tooth should be considered a dental emergency. We will also establish further information on the treatment options available for cracked teeth.

Types of Cracked Teeth

There are four categories of cracked teeth:

• Fractured cusp: This is a form of crack that finds its way down to reach out to the outer cusp of a tooth. Fractured cusps are often caused by injury or trauma to the tooth.
• Craze line: This is a form of crack only visible outside the tooth. Craze lines are usually harmless and often do not require any treatment.
• Vertical root fracture: One of the cracks that are illustrated from the crown to the root of the tooth. Vertical fractures are not very easy to diagnose and when the condition is left untreated can result in some serious complications.
• Split tooth: It refers to the cracking off of the tooth along with splitting into two distinctive pieces. The splitting commonly occurs because of some extreme trauma to the body of the tooth.

Signs and Symptoms of a Cracked Tooth

The signs and symptoms of a cracked tooth depend on the kind of crack. However, the most common symptoms are as follows:

• Pain when biting or chewing
• Sensitive to hot and cold
• Swelling in the jaw
• Bad taste
• Loosened teeth

When a Cracked Tooth Is an Emergency

You must see emergency dental care if your symptoms are any of the following:

• Cracks with severe pains
• Bleeding in the tooth
• You will find it hard to open your mouth
• There would be swelling in the face

Cracked Teeth Treatment

The treatment of a cracked tooth would depend on the type of crack and the level of symptoms. Some of the possible treatment options may include;

• Composite filling: It is one of the fillings that could be used to fill in the small cracks within the teeth.
• Dental crown: A dental crown is a form of cap that can be placed above a cracked tooth for cover.
• Root canal: A root canal can be done on a cracked tooth if the cracked tooth happens to become infected.
• Extraction of the tooth: Sometimes, a cracked tooth may need to be extracted.

A cracked tooth may be deemed one of the more serious dental emergencies. Thus, if one suffers from cracked teeth, then it is advisable to seek emergency dental care when any of the symptoms mentioned above occur. This complication may be prevented by receiving early diagnosis and treatment.

When you have an urgent dental problem, then you should find a local dentist who will help attend to your needs accordingly. You may try searching the internet or just contacting your insurance for a local dentist.

Dental Emergency

A dental emergency is a situation that requires urgent dental care. At this stage, if you’re having a dental emergency, you should seek emergency dental services at once.

Treatment of Fractured Teeth

The treatment for fractured teeth varies with the crack type and symptom severity. Of course, some of the treatments include the following;

• Composite filling
• Dental crown
• Root canal
• Tooth extraction

If you are interested such as more information blogs like this, visit our blog space. If you have questions, please contact our dentist.