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Cracked Tooth Repair in Austin, TX

Optima Dental Surgery Center provides treatment for cracked and damaged teeth throughout the Austin area. With over 30 years of collective experience, our specialists have helped thousands of patients with affordable and relatively painless treatment. To learn more about our services and schedule a free consultation, contact our office today!

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Learn More About Treating Damaged Teeth 

Cracked or fractured teeth are a very common problem we treat at Optima Dental surgery center. With the technology for dental work has advanced, people are able to retain their natural teeth longer. Over time,  cracks or fractures may occur as a result of biting hard on an object, grinding, trauma, and even teeth clenching.  

Whenever your tooth enamel is cracked, the pain can be unbearable for a moment. As long as you don’t put pressure on the cracked tooth enamel, for example, biting action there shouldn’t be discomfort. But as soon as you do the biting action it widens the crack exposing the pulp and inner workings of the tooth causing discomfort to occur. Once both parts of the cracks on the tooth are joined back together, the pain will surely subside. If left untreated it can cause irreversible damage to the pulp of the tooth and thus cause you to endure more pain. It can also let bacteria enter the crack reaching the bone and causing an infection not only in the bone and tooth but the soft tissue surrounding the tooth as well. 

Symptoms of a cracked tooth may include:

  • Unexplained pain while eating 
  • Having sensitivity to both warm and cold foods
  • Pain for no obvious reason
  • Difficulty pinpointing where the pain is located

What kind of cracks can affect the teeth?

There are many ways in which teeth may crack. Once we figure out what kind of crack the tooth endured we can select the type of treatment that is required for you to have. For example, if the crack in the tooth isn’t too deep, then a root canal procedure can take place. Whereas if the crack is deep and possibly even damaged then we would have to perform an extraction meaning removal of the tooth completely.

Crazes – Generally tiny vertical cracks that are not dangerous to the teeth. Dentists actually find these scratches completely normal in the tooth anatomy. With crazes, treatment is rarely required for health reasons, but cosmetic treatment can be performed to reduce negative aesthetic impact.

Oblique supragingival cracks – This crack only affects the crown of the tooth, never goes below the gum region. The affected part of the tooth will eventually break off. As for pain, there will almost never be a pain just because the pulp and nerves are not being exposed at this time. 

Oblique subgingival cracks – These cracks are the cracks that go beyond the gum line and go as far as the jawline. Once a  piece of the tooth breaks it will remain in place until the dentist goes in to remove the broken piece. Having an oblique subgingival crack is painful and will require a combination of periodontal surgery and endodontic treatments to have the crown replaced. 

Vertical furcation cracks – This type of crack occurs when the root of the tooth separates. This type of crack will always affect the nerves inside the tooth causing you to experience some pain. In most cases, root canal therapy and a crown can usually save the tooth. 

Oblique root cracks – These cracks don’t usually affect the crown of the tooth at all, the damage is actually below the gum and usually below the jawline. Depending on how close the crack is to the surface, root canal therapy is a possibility. But in most cases with these kinds of cracks extractions may be your only solution.

Vertical apical root cracks – These cracks occur at the tip of the root of the tooth (the apex). Root canal can help alleviate the pain temporarily but overall it’s best to extract the tooth because of the high level of pain it comes with.

How are cracks in the teeth treated?

There are many ways to see cracked teeth, either with x-ray images or just in plain sight you can see it in your mirror. Depending on the type of crack your tooth may have, if the root is infected you can be treated with root canal therapy. In this procedure, the pulp, vessels, nerves, and tooth will be extracted and replaced with gutta-percha to fill the space. For surface cracks, a crown or filling will be placed to stabilize the tooth to function normally.

If the tooth is too damaged and cannot be saved then in this case we would have to extract the tooth completely. But the good news is that there are several restoration options, like your dentist may recommend getting a bridge, dental implant, and partial dentures. With these options, you can go back to chewing, biting, and speaking functions.

Contact Optima to Schedule Your Broken Tooth Treatment

With our office in Round Rock, we serve the greater Austin area. Book your appointment with our cracked tooth specialists today!

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