About Me

A few years ago, I realized that I was thinking about dental care all wrong. Instead of listening carefully to my dentist and making the necessary changes, I assumed that he was ultimately responsible for making sure that my teeth stayed healthy. Unfortunately, I developed a few serious cavities because I failed to properly brush and floss my teeth, and I knew that it was my fault. I decided to start taking notes at my dental checkups and carefully abiding by the dentist's orders. The difference was almost miraculous. This blog is all about working with your dentist to improve your result.

Working With My Dentist

What Can Be Done If A Dental Crown Falls Out?

10 December 2015

Siiri Puro

Dental crowns are extremely durable; however, they can fall out for a number of reasons. If one of your dental crowns fell out, you might be able to save some money by having your dentist put it back in place. Unfortunately, this is not always an option though. Here are several things you should know about crowns that fall out of place.

You Must Keep The Crown Clean And Safe

If you are hoping to save this crown and avoid needing a new one made for you, you will have to keep the crown clean and safe after it falls out. Once it falls out, remove the crown from your mouth and brush it with toothpaste and a toothbrush. Let the crown dry afterwards and place it in a small baggie or container with a lid. After you do this, you should contact your dentist to schedule an appointment as quickly as possible.

When you call to schedule an appointment, the receptionist may give you additional steps to take to keep the crown clean and safe. If this is the case, make sure you do exactly what he or she tells you to do. One of the things the receptionist might suggest is brushing the tooth that had the crown. Keeping this tooth clean until you can visit the dentist may improve your odds of being able to reuse the same crown.

Factors That Can Cause You To Need A New Crown

The next thing to understand is that there may be times when crowns cannot be reused, but the only way to know this is by visiting your dentist. There are crown cement kits you can purchase from pharmacies, and these kits allow you to temporarily place a crown back on a tooth. This may seem like a good solution to your problem, but this should not be used as a long-term solution.

Your dentist will look for several things when determining whether or not the crown can be inserted back in place, and this includes:

The condition of the crown – Dental crowns are often made of porcelain, and porcelain can break even though it is durable and strong. If your crown is in perfect condition after falling it, there is a better chance the dentist will be able to reuse it. If the crown is broken, chipped, or cracked, the dentist will not be able to use it. You will need to get a new one if this is the case.
The condition of the tooth – The other major factor that will affect the outcome of this is the condition of the tooth the crown was covering. Crowns are custom made to fit a tooth. Because of this, if the tooth changed at all after the crown was made, the original crown will probably not fit well over the tooth.

If the dentist cannot put the crown back on your tooth, he or she will have to make a new one for you.

How Crowns Are Placed Back On Teeth

If your tooth and crown are both in great shape, the dentist may decide to place the original crown back on the tooth. To do this, the dentist may have to complete the following steps:

Clean the tooth thoroughly
Clean the crown
Cement the crown on the tooth

If this can be done, this would be the cheapest way to handle the problem. Unfortunately, though, reusing a crown is not always an option.

If you recently lost a dental crown, visiting a dentist soon is critical. To learn more or to make an appointment, contact a dentist in your area today or click here for more info.

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