It is useful to ensure that you understand the various steps that you can take to repair cracked teeth after they occur. At David G. Johnson, we can help you to restore your cracked teeth and protect the health of your smile. Preventing cracked teeth in the first place is often the best strategy for protecting your oral health. There are several steps that you can take to help accomplish this. Here are a few of our top tips for preventing cracked or chipped teeth.

Watch What you Eat

The food that you eat can easily lead to cracked teeth. Chewing on ice or biting on hard foods can lead to cracked or chipped teeth. Take care when you eat these hard foods, so that you avoid damage to the tooth. For example, biting down on a candy cane can cause damage to the teeth. It is also important to consider the role that your food plays in your oral health. Excessive sugar consumption can cause tooth decay, which can make it much easier to have teeth that crack or chip. Dairy products that contain calcium, however, can help to strengthen the teeth and make them less susceptible to damage.

Care for your Teeth

Keeping your teeth healthy and in good condition is essential in preventing damage to your smile. There are many ways that you can ensure that your teeth stay as healthy and strong as possible. Mouthwash that contains fluoride can help to provide significant strength to your teeth, which makes them more vulnerable to damage. It is also important to ensure that you follow a good oral hygiene routine and visit your dentist on a regular basis.

Treat Bruxism

If you consistently grind your teeth, either during the day or while you sleep, this condition will cause the teeth to wear down and weaken. This can cause them to be far more vulnerable to cracking. There are several steps that you can take to resolve this. You can ensure that you practice healthy stress management strategies and focus on not clenching your jaw throughout the day. It is also beneficial to wear a mouth guard at night if you find that you grind your teeth during the evening.

Wear Mouthguards During Sports

Trauma injuries can easily cause cracked teeth. These injuries become much more common when you participate in contact sports. By using the appropriate protection, you can help to protect your teeth and limit damage. This can help you to prevent chipping, cracks, and additional damage to your smile. This is also an important step for individuals with braces, as trauma to the face can cause a substantial amount of damage to the interior of the mouth.

Don’t Use your Teeth as a Tool

Many people turn to their teeth when scissors aren’t readily available. This causes a substantial amount of wear on your teeth. Your teeth should only ever be used for chewing your food. Don’t use your teeth to hold objects or in lieu of scissors. Your teeth are not a tool for anything aside from eating. Keeping this in mind can help you to prevent damage to the teeth.

Pay Attention to Sensitivity

If you are experiencing sensitivity, it is highly likely that there are already issues present with your smile. Simply ignoring these issues often enables them to escalate. This can cause your teeth to be more susceptible to damage, such as cracked teeth. When you obtain treatment early on, you can restore the health of your teeth more quickly and limit damage to your smile. Sensitivity, particularly to hot or cold temperatures, can easily indicate that your teeth have an underlying issue that should be examined and repaired.  

When you have experienced cracked teeth, it will be important to receive the appropriate services to eliminate any escalation of damage to your smile. We can help you to restore the condition of your teeth and maintain a healthy, beautiful smile. Our cracked teeth services can help to restore your oral health and your smile’s appearance. For more information about repairing your cracked teeth or protecting the overall health of your teeth, contact us at David G. Johnson today!

Root canal retreatment is necessary when a prior root canal fails or a recurrent infection occurs. While root canals have a high rate of success, there are some that do fail. We will take x-rays to get some insight into the tooth to identify what is causing the root canal to fail. If you do need a retreatment of a root canal, here are some things to be aware of:

A root canal retreatment may require two visits. Normally we will ask for two visits to make sure the retreatment works. The first visit will consist of removing all the existing filling material and clean the roots again. We will place calcium hydroxide antibacterial paste in the root and close it with filling material. The second visit will then complete the root canal by closing the tooth with permanent filling material and ensuring the antibiotic treatment worked to clear the infection and keep the tooth healthy.

If the root canal is not retreatable due to other issues such as the tooth not having enough of itself left to be attached to a crown, you may need to consider a tooth extraction and dental implant. Fracturing a tooth is common for some people who continue to chew hard candies, ice, and other foods on a root canaled tooth .

Our goal is to preserve your tooth and help avoid invasive dental procedures like tooth extraction and implant. Contact our office today if you do have a tooth that has been root canaled and it is starting to hurt again, or you notice any type of infection near the tooth. David G. Johnson, D.D.S, is here to help you with all your endodontistry needs!

Are you experiencing excruciating tooth pain? If you have visited a dentist, and they recommend a root canal, it’s important to understand what a root canal actually is, and why you need to schedule an appointment for a root canal.

What is a Root Canal?

A root canal is required when tooth pulp has become infected due to cavity or trauma. The infected tooth pulp will need to be removed from the tooth, essentially rendered the tooth “dead”.

Why an Endodontist is Needed for a Root Canal

Learn how endodontists’ advanced training, specialized techniques and superior technologies make them the best choice for root canal treatment to save your natural teeth. An endodontist has advanced education and training in dental pulp diseases. An endodontist goes to an additional three years of advanced speciality education after the completion of dental school, which is a four year program. The additional training allows endodontists the ability to identify complex dental pulp infections, which could be missed from a general dentist.

Advanced Dental Pulp Infection Treatment

An endodontist limits their practice to the treatment of dental pulp, which narrows our expertise down, ensuring patients receive the best treatment for tooth pain. On average, an endodontist completes roughly 25 root canals weekly, continuing to enhance their craft and skill.

Modern Technology in Root Canal Treatment

The right imaging can make a difference in proper treatment of a root canal. Certain roots actually twist and turn, requiring the right tools and equipment to remove the pulp. General dentists do not always have the tools and modern equipment needed for effective treatment. Endodontists work in an area that is extremely small, using dental operating microscopes in order to see the root canal properly to render effective treatment.

Root Canal Treatment in Layton and Centerville

If you are in need of root canal treatment in Layton and Centerville, we recommend contacting our office. At David G. Johnson DDS, we specialize in the treatment of infected dental pulp requiring root canal therapy. Contact our office to schedule a consultation so we can aid in getting you out of pain!