Bad habits, like improvising your teeth as tools, or nibbling on foreign objects can put you at increased risk of suffering a chip or small dental fracture. This is even more likely to be an issue if you grind your teeth at night without the protection of a quality dental guard. This can be especially troubling, if the damaged tooth enamel traps bacterial deposits, fostering dangerous tooth decay.
If the chip is small, and on an insignificant location, Dr. Scott Healey might be able to repair the tooth with a composite resin or amalgam filling. To do this he will numb the tooth and surrounding gums with Novocain before using a drill to remove a small amount of the surrounding tooth enamel. This will provide a clean, healthy enamel surface for the final filling to adhere to.
The specific material Dr. Scott Healey recommends for your filling will depend on the tooth’s primary function and its appearance in your smile. Amalgam fillings are made from a blend of inert dental metals. They are dark in color, so they are rarely used to repair a chip or cavity visible in your smile.
For fillings in this location, Dr. Scott Healey might use a composite resin filling. This is a special dental plastic that can be perfectly shaded to match the surrounding tooth enamel in your smile. Once it’s been hardened by ultraviolet light, the filling will repair the tooth for many years ahead.
If you live in Lindon, Utah and you have a tooth with a chip or cavity, you should call 801.653.0099 to have it examined and treated with Dr. Scott Healey.
