Permanent crowns are made of porcelain or metal alloys and are constructed to offer durability. Usually, the permanent crowns lay seated for many years.
However, occasionally, it gets dislodged for various reasons like chewing sticky or hard food substances, trauma, etc. During such situations, you suddenly feel a small, hard substance floating in your mouth, causing you to panic.
Reasons Why Your Permanent Crown Fell Off
The permanent crown is fixed to the tooth with durable dental cement. Though termed “permanent,” the fixation stays shorter than its intended period for several reasons.
- Erosion Of The Dental Cement
The cement that holds the crown in place is made of durable material. Even though you exercise enough caution in maintaining its quality with regular brushing habits, it could deteriorate. A common reason is that patients unknowingly consume food substances with more acidic content that interacts with the cement.
To manage this, the dentist cleans the tooth and crown of any residual matter and replaces the tooth with an undamaged old crown or a new one.
- Lack Of Proper Fit
If the crown does not fit or misses accuracy, everyday buccal activities may put pressure on the crown, loosening it and pushing it out. Also, the cement should be allowed to set in correctly; else, the crown detaches soon.
Hence, extensively search with your available resources to approach an orthodontic surgeon with enough experience for crown placements or replacements.
- Check Bruxism
If you are in the habit of grinding or gnashing your teeth while you sleep, it can cause the cement to crack or the crown to break down gradually, which can throw off the crown.
To avoid this, your dentist may offer you to wear a night guard when you sleep.
- Persistent Tooth Decay
A restored tooth is more vulnerable to dental plaque, and if not brushed or flossed adequately, it can change the dental architecture and cause tooth decay. To avoid this, you should remember to maintain proper oral hygiene daily. Root canal treatment may help avoid decay.
- Microleakage
For multiple reasons, the luting cement that holds fast the crown to the tooth can be washed away, which results in a hollow pore or cavity in the cement space. This loosens the crown and finally dislodges it. A dentist can address this issue upon examination.
- Food habits
Food substances with stickiness, high acidic content, artificial colors, flavors that react with the cement or crown, etc., may lead to permanent crown damage. It is best to adhere to your dentist’s advice and avoid taking hard foods if you have a permanent crown fixated.
- Jerk or trauma
Unusual jerks experienced while brushing or flossing and suffering physical blows or traumatic injuries to the face or jaw area can throw the crown off its place.
How To Deal With A Situation When A Permanent Crown Falls Out?
As you got your crown fixed by a dentist after spending enough time and money to restore a tooth, a prompt re-fix would help save much of the hardships you underwent. Hence, it is deemed an emergency dental situation. Let us look into some issues surrounding falling out of a permanent crown.
Why Is Immediate Attention Necessary?
When a crown is pulled out of its place, immediate attention is necessary because:
- It immediately exposes the tooth, making it prone to infection.
- It can bring back the pain and sensitivity suffered earlier, to a pre-procedure level or even more severe.
- It precludes you from eating or drinking what you wish to and can prevent you from performing your daily activities considerably.
- Even if no pain or sensitivity is felt, if left unattended, it can be a source of bacterial infection which can spread to surrounding teeth.
Recommendations To Encounter A FallOut
Now that your crown is off its place. Either you retrieved it from your mouth immediately or from where you spat it. It is natural for you to be concerned but follows these steps to deal with the situation.
- Do Not Panic
It has happened to many patients before. So, remember, it is not a peculiar scenario isolated to you alone. In fact, when you meet your dentist, he or she can solve this quickly.
- Call Your Dentist
Do not delay calling your dentist’s office to schedule an appointment. If available over the phone, your dentist will probably calm you down with sane advice to give you confidence until you visit him personally. The decision to reuse the crown or replace it with a new one shall be left to your dentist’s discretion after he checks the crown and examines your dental makeup.
- Try Your Best To Find It
If it is not in your mouth or hand, you probably would have spat it out, alarmed by detecting a new substance in your mouth, which is natural. Search and pick it up, wash, and preserve it. You have to take it to your dentist because if this has not been dented or damaged due to your bite or fall, the dentist can probably refix it to the tooth.
- Transport The Crown Hygienically
Clean and wrap up the crown after rinsing it with warm water, as it could get stained easily. If possible, try cleaning the crown’s inner parts with toothpaste. Wrapping it in a clean and dry plastic container, take it to the surgeon’s office.
- Protect Your Uncovered Tooth
The open tooth shall remain tender. As it is no longer protected, it could hurt a lot. To manage this, procure dental wax from your nearby drugstore and lump it around the tooth. You can also buy temporary dental cement to bond the crown back in place.
- Possible Dental Implications
If you are recommended to go for a new one, it involves considerable time. As a new crown needs to be manufactured once again in line with measurements matching your dental geometry, you may be asked to wait for some days.
During such periods, your dentist may warn you to avoid hard chewing, tobacco consumption, and avoiding hot and cold substances. Also, if pain persists, prescription medications are given.
Protecting A Permanent Crown From Falling Out
If your crown is improperly engineered and does not fit, it loosens and invariably falls off. Only a dentist can offer the best treatment and care in such scenarios.
Also, if your crown is cemented to a weak or bad-quality material, the crown falling off is imminent and unpreventable. In these cases, you are advised to rush to your dentist proactively.
Following are the steps you can take before the situation gets out of hand:
Avoid Or Pay Attention If:
- You have the habit of chewing ice that floats in your drinks. It induces high pressure on your overall dentition, and the cement may not withstand.
- You crave sticky foods containing artificial resins that can glue to the crown or tooth and force its separation.
- You are munching too many hard nuts, corn, chips, etc., as it can break the crown.
Regular Dental Flossing
Dental floss aids in cleaning between the teeth and is an excellent technique to prevent plaque that, if allowed to form, can damage the neighboring teeth with or without crowns.
Regular Brushing
Brush your teeth two times a day, i.e., morning and night, and if possible, after every meal. Use recommended interdental toothbrushes, which have a deeper penetration effect and give a thorough cleaning.
Mouth Washing
Your dentist can recommend you good mouthwash. Get into the habit of using it daily, as it prevents the onset of bacterial growth.
Stop Nail-Biting
If you are a habitual nail-biter, get rid of that habit, as it could transmit bacteria and increase the risk of tooth loss. Infection, once acquired, can spread to entire teeth leading to severe damage.
Periodic Dental Check-ups
Never skip or procrastinate your dental follow-ups.
How To Replace The Crown After The Permanent Crown Falls Out?
Your damaged tooth cannot be covered entirely with any known dental restoration methods except what a permanent crown can offer. Hence, you are left with few dental restorative options to substitute a failed crown.
Your dentist checks the old crown that you carefully took with you to his office and assesses it for quality and suitability for replacement of the same over the exposed tooth. If viable, you can replace the tooth with the same crown you lost. The dentist simply re-cements the crown back in its place.
But after analyzing it, if your dentist finds it unsuitable, he may recommend you for a new one. However, this is done after deep diving into the cause of losing your older one.
Final Words
Adherence to your dentist’s recommendations posts your permanent crown fixing may help prevent many undesirable consequences. Keeping your crowns healthy and intact does not require you to make dramatic lifestyle changes.
In most cases, paying attention to daily oral maintenance will prevent the crown from falling out. Regular dental check-ups with your dentist can lead you to solve any remaining unaddressed issues. Remember that proven technology and effective remedies exist for crown falling-out scenarios.