Bad habits like chewing on pencils and pens or crunching on ice can potentially chip one of your teeth. This is even more likely to be a problem if you grind your teeth at night without the protection of a quality dental guard.
Even if the chipped tooth doesn’t cause discomfort you should still have it examined and treated at Dr. Don Niu’s dental office. As time passes bacterial deposits can build up in the fractured tooth enamel. This could foster a new cavity to develop in the already distressed tooth.
If the chip is small and the biting surface isn’t significantly compromised, Dr. Don Niu might be able to repair the tooth with a simple dental filling. This often calls for removing a small amount of additional tooth enamel before applying a composite resin or amalgam dental filling.
If the chip is large or the biting surface of the tooth has been compromised Dr. Don Niu might recommend repairing the tooth with a dental crown. This will fully replace the entire tooth enamel layer with an alternate dental material.
In the future you might want to address the underlying cause of the chip. This could involve wearing a dental guard in your mouth when you sleep or curtailing your bad habits.
If you live in the Irvine, California, area and you’ve recently suffered a chipped tooth you should call 949-551-8877 to seek treatment at Irvine Dental Group.