Tackling Your Dental Treatment Plan

If you have a chipped tooth and have avoided seeing the dentist because you're afraid the treatment will hurt or be overly complicated, here is some good news: the treatment will probably be a lot simpler than you think. Depending on the severity of your chip, your dentist will probably use one of three methods to repair or hide the chip. All three are essentially painless and rather easy on the patient.

Dental Contouring

If the chip is small, your dentist may simply file down the tooth to smooth it out. This procedure is called dental contouring. Sometimes, the opposing tooth will also need to be filed down in order to keep them looking even. Before filing a tooth, your dentist will take x-rays to ensure that your tooth is healthy enough for this procedure and to determine how far down he or she can safely file without exposing the sensitive dentin that lies under the tooth enamel.

Though filing down the tooth is simple, you should never try this at home. You might end up filing the tooth down too far and causing pain, or making the problem worse by creating a mismatched look between your teeth.

Composite Bonding

If the chip is too large to be filed down, or if your tooth is not health enough to support the filing, your dentist may simply fill it with composite resin. This is the same material that is used to fill cavities. It is injected into the chipped area and then carefully shaped to make it blend in with your natural tooth.

Composite resin can be stained most any color, so your dentist will choose the color that's the same as your tooth so the final results are not obvious. You might be given some local anesthetic during the procedure, but it should be painless.

Applying Veneers

If the chip is too large or not shaped properly to be filled with composite resin, another option is covering the tooth with a veneer. A veneer is a thin piece of porcelain that is fixed to the surface of the tooth. When someone looks at you, they will see the perfect veneer, rather than the chipped tooth underneath it.

Applying veneers is a simple process. You will have to have two appointments. During the first appointment, your dentist will measure your teeth and fit you for the veneers. During the second appointment, you'll have the veneers placed on your teeth.

Whether you need your tooth filed, filled, or covered with a veneer, you should rest assured that repairing the chip is not going to be terrible or painful. People chip their teeth all of the time, and dentists are very skilled at dealing with this issue.

For more information, contact Associates For Family Dentistry or a similar location.