The spread of COVID-19 continues to affect us all. With the uncertainty of what is yet to come as a result of this pandemic, we continue to monitor the situation and remain focused on the health and safety of the patients we love, our dedicated staff, our community, and our families.
In accordance with the latest recommendations from the ADA (Australian Dental Association), and to make sure we are doing our part to prevent unnecessary exposure to our patients and staff ads well as the further spread of the virus, we will be deferring all routine dental treatments and restricting appointments to urgent treatment and emergencies only.
In this post, we’ll address a common patient concern of a broken tooth.
A broken tooth is another common dental emergency, as there are many ways it can occur. Some examples are accidents that involve trauma to the mouth, and biting foods that are excessively hard. The damage can range from a minor chip that only affects your appearance, to breaks that are severe enough to expose the pulp inside the tooth.
While any broken tooth should be examined by your dentist, some questions can help determine the extent of the problem:
- Is the tooth painful?
- Is the tooth sharp and cutting your tongue or cheek?
- Is it a front tooth or a back tooth?
Some helpful tips can prevent complications:
- Make sure your hands are clean before you put them into your mouth
- Place a small amount of sugar free gum into the hole or broken area. This will reduce sensitivity until you come to our office.
- If you don’t have chewing gum, you can obtain ready made dental filling cement at your local pharmacy. Follow the instructions on the label. This can prevent further damage to the broken tooth.
- If you only have a small chip on your tooth, you may be able to smooth the sharp edges with a nail file. Make sure to clean the file with soap and water or mouthwash before you put it into your mouth.
- Call our office at (02) 8599 7107. We’re always ready to help whenever you experience a dental emergency. If the situation is relatively minor, we can offer advice on how to take care of your broken tooth at home. For more serious issues, though, you may need to come into our office.
At TLC Dental, Dr Hoffenberg and his team care about you and your oral health. A visit to our office is the quickest way to have a broken tooth repaired. We’re happy to offer this dental service so you can have a healthy, attractive smile.
The ADA’s website can be reached here: Australian Dental Association