We find that it’s a regular occurrence – you’re eating something a bit harder or tougher, bite down on your back teeth and ‘Ouch’. A cracked tooth. A very common problem and usually simple to remedy.
We spend a great deal of our time helping people with cracked teeth. It can be something as simple as a small chip (maybe the edge of a front tooth) which can be repaired easily and invisibly using tooth-coloured filling material, or a significant crack running right through a molar tooth.
The cracked teeth that pose the bigger challenges are the back teeth. Often you can develop cracks in teeth that have been previously filled (in particular, if they have older metal fillings in them).
One of the most common symptoms of a cracked tooth is a sharp pain when biting, especially on harder foods.
The good news is that there’s almost always a solution. Teeth which have metal fillings in them are notorious for cracking over time. Often, replacing the metalwork with a tooth coloured filling can help to “glue” the tooth together and offer better protection from further cracking. If the crack is significant, it’s not uncommon to end up needing a crown – a ceramic shell which sits over the top of the tooth – to seal it and hold everything together.
As ever, you know what to do – we’re here to help so call us and come and speak to your dentist about it.
Mike
