Chipped teeth are everyone's worst nightmare when it comes to their teeth. Learn about the most common causes of a chipped tooth and treatments.

Chipped Tooth, Emergency Dentist Stockton CA

On average, a person visits a hospital emergency room for a dental condition every 15 seconds. One of the most common dental emergencies that people experience is broken or chipped teeth.

Learning more about the causes of these types of injuries can help you avoid them in the future. Do you want to learn more about chipped teeth and how to treat them?

Keep reading this guide to understand the most common causes of a chipped tooth and to see what treatments an emergency dentist in Stockton, CA can provide for a chipped tooth.

Chipped Teeth vs. Cracked Teeth

Chipped teeth are often mistaken for cracked teeth, so it is important that you learn how to distinguish these two types of dental issues. This way, you will know exactly what you are dealing with and can find the best treatment options.

A cracked tooth is often known as a fractured tooth. While it can sometimes be small and painless, serious fractures in your teeth can cause your tooth to break or split.

Often, cracked teeth are caused by age, biting hard foods, grinding teeth, and trauma to a tooth.

A chipped tooth happens when a piece of your tooth enamel breaks off. Minor chips may not cause any issues to your tooth other than the aesthetics. However, some chips in teeth may break off multiple layers of your tooth and may leave the middle layer of your tooth exposed.

If you feel a jagged or uneven surface when you run your tongue over your teeth, it is likely due to a chipped tooth.

Common Chipped Tooth Causes

There are many things that may cause your tooth to chip. One of the most common causes is trauma to the face or mouth.

Often, people get hit in the face while playing sports or while doing other activities. Even falling and hitting your face can cause your tooth to break. To avoid getting a chipped tooth, it is best to wear a mouth guard whenever you play contact sports.

Another reason why many people chip their teeth is that they bite down on hard foods. Dentists always recommend that you don't chew hard foods, like ice, hard candy, or popcorn kernels.

If possible, you should avoid these foods, especially if you have weakened teeth.

Finally, you may chip your teeth if you have bruxism, also known as excessive teeth grinding. If you grind your teeth in your sleep, it can easily wear down the surface of your teeth and make them more likely to chip in the future.

Risk Factors for Chipped Teeth

While there are many things that are out of your control that may lead to chipped teeth, there are some things that may make you more likely to chip your teeth. Learning more about these risk factors can help you protect your teeth and avoid chipping them in the future.

One of the biggest risk factors for chipped teeth is age. These commonly happen in children or people over the age of 50 that have weakened teeth. While you cannot change your age, you may want to avoid the activities that commonly lead to chipped teeth if you have a higher risk of chipped teeth.

Something else that can lead to chipped teeth is having large dental fillings or a root canal on your teeth. These large repairs can weaken your natural tooth and may make them more susceptible to chipping.

Similarly, having cavities can weaken your tooth and may make it more likely that your tooth will chip in the future.

Finally, poor oral hygiene can increase your risk for chipped teeth. This is because your poor oral care can lead to damaged or thinning tooth enamel. With weakened enamel, your teeth are more likely to get chipped in an accident or when you bite on something hard.

Chipped Tooth Solutions

If you happen to chip your teeth, there are many solutions for fixing a chipped tooth that an emergency dentist can provide. The different types of treatment will depend on the size of the chip on your tooth.

Small chips are the easiest to treat. If you have a very small chip, your dentist can smooth out the jagged edge and polish your tooth. These small chips don't require any other treatment.

Medium chips that have damaged your tooth enamel will require more treatment. Typically, your dentist will have to use a filling, cap, or crown to cover the chipped tooth and to improve its appearance and function.

This will protect the inner layers of your tooth and will prevent it from getting infected. Sometimes, your dentist will even be able to reattach the tooth fragment that broke off.

If you have a large chip on your tooth, it may have exposed the tooth nerve. In these cases, you cannot fix the chip with a simple filling. Instead, your dentist will need to perform a root canal to remove the damaged nerve.

Then, they can replace the chipped tooth with a crown or cap.

If the tooth chip has only caused aesthetic damage to your tooth, your dentist will have more options to repair the tooth. They may use bonding, porcelain veneers, and even dental onlays to create a durable and natural-looking replacement for the broken section of your tooth.

Need Help Fixing a Chipped Tooth? Find An Emergency Dentist in Stockton, CA

Chipped teeth are common dental emergencies that can be caused by many factors. Learning more about chipped teeth can help you avoid chipping your teeth and can help you find solutions for fixing a chipped tooth.

If you need help fixing a chipped tooth and need an emergency dentist in Stockton, CA, Galvez Dental can help! We provide emergency dentistry services to get you out of pain as soon as possible.

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