Imagine you’re going about your normal day, when you bite down and hear an unusually loud crunch. Did you just crack your tooth? You rush to a mirror and look at your teeth, but you don’t any damage or even feel any pain. Your teeth are very durable, but they’re not unbreakable. It’s estimated that there are more than 200,000 cases of cracked teeth every year, and they’re not always visible or painful. Every cracked tooth needs to be treated right away before disease and infection set in and cause serious harm. Read on to learn everything you need to know about cracked teeth, like what causes them, how to spot them, and how to treat them.
What Causes a Tooth to Crack?
There are a variety of things that can play a role in cracking your tooth. Some of these include:
- Continuous pressure on your teeth from bruxism, or nightly teeth grinding, which weakens your enamel.
- Sudden, intense pressure on your teeth from an impact like biting a hard food, a sporting injury, or a fall.
- Teeth that are weakened by a large filling, gum disease, age, or other reasons.
Symptoms of a Cracked Tooth
Most people incorrectly assume that it’s obvious when you crack a tooth. However, just because you can’t see or feel a crack doesn’t mean that it’s not there. Be sure to watch out for:
- Pain when chewing or releasing a bite
- Erratic dental pain that comes and goes
- Sensitivity to hot, cold, or sweet things
- Swelling of the gums around the affected tooth
How to Treat a Cracked Tooth
A cracked tooth will not heal on its own. If you think your tooth is cracked, you need to see your dentist right away. Depending the crack’s direction, depth, and size, your dentist will suggest the best ways to repair it. For small cracks, dental bonding or fillings might be all that’s needed. However, larger cracks will need treatments like dental crowns or root canal therapy.
Dental crowns are a very common prosthetic used to restore the shape of your tooth, strengthen it, and keep out infections. Usually, they’re made of tooth-colored dental ceramic for durability and a natural look. These are a great option for patients who need more than just bonding or fillings but still have most of a healthy tooth to protect.
Cracked teeth are unfortunately a very common occurrence that can happen to anyone. Be sure to treat any conditions that can cause them and watch out for symptoms of a cracked tooth even if you don’t see one.
About the Practice
OakBrook Dental and Orthodontics provides general, restorative, and preventive dentistry to patients in the McKinney, TX area. Their experienced team of dentists are happy to provide a variety of restorative services for cracked teeth, including dental crowns and same-day emergency appointments. If you’d like to learn more, they can be contacted at their website or at (469) 526-4040.