3 Reasons to Visit an Emergency Dentist for a Lost Filling or Crown

If your crown or filling falls out, you should visit an emergency dentist. Perhaps you felt a strange object in your mouth while eating. Your first step should be calling the emergency dentist. Keep reading to see why you should visit this type of dentist for a missing restoration.

1. Be seen quickly

Many times, a patient would need to wait to be seen at a general dentist’s office. Emergency dentists often have appointments right away. The dentist might first go over the patient’s medical history. The dentist can take an X-ray to examine the area further. Then the dentist can look at the X-ray to determine what the treatment will be.

If another filling can be used to replace the lost one, the dentist will talk about different options. In some cases, the patient may need to be referred to another dentist. For example, sometimes, endodontic treatment is necessary. In rare circumstances, the tooth might need to be completely extracted.

2. Get fast treatment

The location of the tooth will determine what type of restoration the patient gets. For example, molars might have silver or composite fillings. For front teeth, a patient might get a glass ionomer or composite filling. Because the back teeth take a lot of force during chewing, a stronger material is a better choice for them. It will often last a bit longer. However, the front teeth do not need fillings that are quite as durable.

In some cases, when a filling or crown comes out, there might be a large cavity. The nerve of the tooth might also be exposed. The only option here will be to get a root canal treatment. Then a crown will have to be put on that.

In more severe cases, a tooth might be so fractured that it will need to be extracted. When this happens, the dentist can come up with a treatment plan. It will include options to replace the tooth. A patient might get a dental implant or a removable bridge.

3. Keep the tooth

Without treatment, the tooth will be left open to bacteria and decay. The longer it is left untreated, the more the tooth will decay. Bits of food can become lodged in the cavity every time a patient eats something. It will be hard to remove the food completely.

This can feed the bacteria, which will produce acids that destroy the tooth. Eventually, the tooth will need to be extracted. In rare cases, an abscessed tooth can even happen. This is considered to be a potentially life-threatening condition.

Visit an emergency dentist today

A lost crown or filling can seem scary, but there is treatment out there. The sooner that the patient acts, the better it will be. This is why you should visit an emergency dentist for this type of issue. Making an appointment today can be the difference between saving and keeping your tooth.

Request an appointment here: https://jorgealvarezdds.com or call Jorge L Alvarez DDS at (520) 722-1655 for an appointment in our Tucson office.

Check out what others are saying about our services on Yelp: Read our Yelp reviews.