Reasons to Make Sure a Cracked Tooth Gets Immediate Treatment Posted on 6/20/2019 by Sundberg Office You are looking in the mirror today. You are posing for an imagined selfie you may take later while you're out. You notice a faint line on one of your front teeth. You figure it is just a hair, and when you go to brush it off, you realize it is a crack in your tooth. Once you get over the horror, then what do you do? First, don't panic. Many cracks can be fixed quite easily, so that they are not even noticeable. Even better, they are easy to repair- if you catch them early. The earlier you can get a cracked tooth fixed, the better off your tooth- and you- will be.
There Are Different Kinds of Cracked Teeth
First, you may notice a crack running up and down the length of your tooth. Craze lines (as they are called) are small cracks in the surface of the tooth. In a craze line fracture, only the enamel looks cracked, just like the surface scratch on your car. Most of the time, unless the craze line crack is in the front of your mouth, nothing needs to be done about them, because they are not damaging your tooth. If it is in the front, we can look at the lines and make suggestions on fixing them. Often, craze lines can be covered up with resin or a bonding agent that is the same color as your tooth surface.
What If The Tooth Crack Goes Deeper?
If the crack looks deeper than a surface crack, it is time to see your dentist right away. That's because this crack could mean that the soft portion of your tooth, called the dentin, is involved. While this type of crack is more serious, there is still a chance you can get this crack fixed easily as well. It all depends on how deep the crack is, and how long it is. A fractured cusp is more serious. These large fractures could split your tooth in half and can be very painful. Depending on the injury, a fractured cusp will need to be restored with a cap or crown. If you see a scratch on your tooth, and you are not sure what it is, why not give us a call? We can help your cracked tooth look good as new!