Your teeth are a vital portion of your total health. When there is a crack or fracture in your teeth, it can instantly cause pain, discomfort, and self doubt. You should seek immediate remedy if you experience a fractured or cracked tooth. In some cases, if the support structures of the tooth are compromised by the crack, then the tooth will need to be extracted.
Down Sides of a Cracked Tooth
- Difficulty Chewing: Obviously it can be harder to chew when there is a cracked tooth.
- Pain: it can also be incredibly painful to eat and speak.
- Self Conscious: Some people experience depression like symptoms as the fight the urge to smile, for embarrassment of a broken or chipped tooth.
- Bleeding: Sometimes the tooth itself cuts a piece of our gums, or the root is so rocked by the break that the tooth continues to bleed.
- Bad Breath: Sometimes the cause of the crack is due to a deep rooted infection. In this case the fracture can cause the bacteria to be exposed to air, leading to a proliferation of bad breath or halitosis.
What caused the Cracked Tooth?
Usually cracks and fractures within the tooth or underlying structure fall into one of three categories.
1. Infection: Infection is a prime culprit, due to the sheer volume of people who experience it. In a dental infection, bits of food become lodged on the surface of the tooth or within the gums. Over time, this food bit hardens and interacts with bacteria the mouth is routinely exposed too. This bacteria, often helpful, is at times malicious and begins attacking healthy gum tissues. The gums recede and the toots become exposed. The support becomes compromised and the tooth can crack.
2. Disease: Sometimes we carry genetic markers or become affected with diseases which compromise the structural support of the tooth. This could be due to a compromise of the immune system or a vitamin or mineral deficiency.
3. Trauma: In the unlucky event of a fall, trip, or car accident–something where a blunt force cracks your tooth. Trauma is the umbrella for forced damage to the tooth or jaw itself which leads to a crack or fracture.
When should a cracked or Fractured Tooth be extracted?
A cracked or fractured tooth should be extracted if the tooth root is so jostled that it can fundamentally warp the surrounding teeth or jaw tissue. In some cases the exposed area of the tooth could lead to greater tooth loss or temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ). In this case your dentist would recommend extracting the tooth, using hygiene techniques on the area, and trying to repair the base for a tooth replacement.
How will you know?
You wont! You’ll have to see the professionals. They can use years of experience and high tech imaging software to determine how deep the rabbit hole of your fracture goes, and how important it is to repair that decaying tissue. Call them and be seen immediately to begin the process, you may even save your tooth from extraction.