Dental fractures occur, like any other bone fracture in the body, most commonly as a result of trauma.
It is quite easy for patients to become accident victims, especially if they are children.
They are full of energy, they run around, and in their play they can fall or bump into hard objects.
But accidents can also happen to adults. The result for both age groups is the same: the tooth is partially or completely fractured.
Depending on the clinical situation, the patient should know how to react, because the right action by the patient or the carer can lead to a very good result in terms of tooth recovery.
Some of the most common questions patients have following fractured teeth are:
What happens to the fractured tooth?
Regardless of what the mechanism of fracture was, it is very important to gather the detached fragments from the teeth.
Not many patients know about the importance of gathering and tightening fractured tooth fragments.
They are ideally picked up off the ground and put in a container of saline or even in water and be rushed to the dentist.
He will disinfect the fragments and then reattach them. The prognosis is favorable, resulting in the recovery of tooth morphology and function.
How do we correctly identify a fracture?
Fractures must be distinguished from cracks in the teeth.
In the case of a fracture, tooth striations appear, possibly accompanied by sensitivity, but in the case of a fracture, the tooth fracture is completely detached.
Is tooth fracture a dental emergency?
Yes! A fractured tooth is a dental emergency because after such an event there may be loss of vitality of the tooth (i.e. death of the nerve), loss of tooth substance accompanied by sensitivity, but also alteration of functions such as chewing, phonation or swallowing.
Facial aesthetics also suffer, as a fractured tooth can be isolating for the patient.
Are there different types of fractures? Which are the most serious?
Of course, there are several types of fractures, characterized either by the path of fracture, the level at which they occur and the depth to which they affect the dental tissues.
The most serious types of fractures, which have a reserved prognosis and which often indicate the extraction of the affected tooth, are longitudinal fractures, which affect the tooth in its axis, along the entire length of the crown and root.
Because dental fractures can happen much more often than we imagine, it is good to be always informed and know how to proceed in such situations, to make the dentist’s work easier and to improve the prognosis of the teeth in the arch.
After accidents resulting in fractured teeth, every hour counts, so it is advisable for the patient to see the dentist as soon as possible.
Sometimes even a few minutes can be essential for the health of the tooth and its recovery.
