Your tooth enamel has been designed to be hard enough to bite, chew and grind hard and tough foods. Unfortunately, there are times when certain activities can apply such unnatural force that it can chip or even fracture a tooth. This could be something like a blow to the face in contact sports or something as mundane as grinding your teeth at night.
The severity of the chip in the enamel will determine the repair or restoration method that your dentist, Dr. Sharon Sims, recommends.
Even if the chip is insignificant and causes no pain, you should still seek timely treatment. In time, the microscopic textures in the tooth enamel can trap bacteria and food particles, allowing a new cavity to form.
In cases like this, a minor chip can be repaired with a basic filling or cosmetic bonding procedure. If one or more teeth in your smile have chips, your dentist might recommend having porcelain dental veneers installed over the face of each tooth.
If a chip is large or on a critical part of a tooth, your dentist might recommend restoring the tooth enamel with a dental crown made from either porcelain, gold or base metal alloy.
In extreme cases, a chipped tooth might also result in damage to the interior pulp. If this is the case, your dentist might need to perform a root canal to restore the damaged structures before mounting a crown.
If you have a chipped tooth in Shreveport, Louisiana, you should not delay in calling 318-631-1100 to have it treated and repaired at Sharon Sims.