The Real Reason You Shouldn’t Leave a Cracked Front Tooth Untreated <Fracture Treatment Case>

The Real Reason You Shouldn’t Leave a Cracked Front Tooth Untreated <Fracture Treatment Case>

Hello.

This is the director of Seoul Bardi Dental Clinic.

A cracked tooth— are you leaving it untreated because it doesn’t hurt yet?

The patient I’m introducing today was the same at first.

They noticed a crack in their front tooth,

but thought, “It’s probably still fine,” and put it off.

Then, sudden severe pain came on,

and they ultimately had to undergo root canal treatment.

Today, I’ll show you why teeth crack and what happens if a cracked tooth is left untreated,

through a real treatment case.

<Table of Contents>

How do cracks and fractures happen in front teeth?
A real case of a cracked front tooth leading to fracture

How do cracks and fractures happen in front teeth?

A crack in a tooth is not just a coincidence.

Although teeth are one of the hardest tissues in the body,

they are surprisingly vulnerable to repeated external force over time.

The main causes of cracks can be broadly divided into three categories.

• Abnormal bite structure

• Habit of eating hard foods

• Teeth grinding or clenching

This patient also developed a crack in the tooth for exactly these reasons,

and had a lot on their mind.

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One thing I could tell just by looking at the teeth was:

“Ah, this person must really like hard foods.”

The chewing surfaces of the upper and lower teeth were generally worn down.

The especially problematic tooth was the cracked front tooth.

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Normally, the upper front teeth slightly overlap the lower front teeth,

forming a structure that cuts food like scissors.

But in this patient, the tips of the upper and lower front teeth

were directly contacting each other face-to-face.

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Every time they ate, it was as if a hammer kept striking a nail head-on, with the tips of the front teeth colliding directly.

What happens when this kind of impact continues for a long time?

Just as glass develops cracks if it is tapped repeatedly,

the tooth also begins to crack little by little.

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At first, the crack is so fine that it cannot be seen with the eye,

but as the impacts keep building up, it can suddenly break one day with a sharp snap.

A real case of a cracked front tooth leading to fracture This was the case of a patient who came in with suddenly severe front tooth pain.

When we examined the tooth, a crack ran through the center of the front surface of the front tooth.

There was also wear near the cervical area (the boundary between the tooth and the gum), leaving the root area worn away.

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They were especially complaining of pain in the right front tooth, where the crack was deeper.

To preserve as much of the natural tooth as possible,

we did not start with root canal treatment.

Instead, we first removed only the infected area around the crack,

and chose a method that preserved the remaining nerve as it was.

We filled it with a material that protects the nerve and decided to monitor it.

“Could the tooth possibly recover on its own?”

We had hope, but....

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Because the cracked area was too deep,

infection eventually spread to the nerve,

and the pain did not go away.

Unfortunately, root canal treatment had to be performed.

The problem was that the cracked area was quite large and deep, so there appeared to be a high risk of the tooth breaking during root canal treatment.

If the tooth were to break, there was also a possibility that it would need to be reinforced with a post,

since there would not be much tooth structure left.

After explaining the situation to the patient,

we began the root canal treatment.

The moment we carefully performed the root canal treatment,

what we had expected happened.

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As soon as we approached the opening of the root canal,

the tooth broke apart around the cracked area.

As expected, there was very little remaining tooth structure,

so after completing the root canal treatment, we had to reinforce it with a post.

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That way, we could secure the retention needed for the crown that would be placed later.

The left front tooth had a crack as well, but the fracture was not severe,

and there was no pain, so we decided to place only a crown without root canal treatment.

In the end, the two front teeth were completed with zirconia crowns.

We also matched the color naturally with the adjacent teeth. 250721

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240605 (Before) 250721 (After) The Real Reason You Shouldn’t Leave a Cracked Front Tooth Untreated <Fracture Treatment Case>

The important point is that not every crack requires immediate treatment.

Even if a tooth has a fine crack, if there are no symptoms and it is not progressing, we can monitor it over time.

However, if there is pain or sensitivity, or if there is a sign that the crack may deepen,

it is wise to identify it early and address it.

If you are worried about whether a cracked tooth is okay to leave alone,

please feel free to visit us.

Through an accurate diagnosis,

we will help you find the best solution together.

Thank you.

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The Real Reason You Shouldn’t Leave a Cracked Front Tooth Untreated <Fracture Treatment Case>

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| This post was written directly by Seoul Bardi Dental Clinic for the purpose of providing medical information in compliance with Article 56, Paragraph 1 of the Medical Service Act regarding medical advertising. We recommend that the information provided be used for reference only, and that you visit a medical institution and receive guidance from medical professionals for symptom assessment and accurate management methods. All procedures/surgeries performed at the dental clinic may involve risks depending on the individual (inflammation, bleeding, swelling, etc.). Please make decisions after sufficient consultation with medical staff in advance. The treatment cases in this post were photographed with the consent of patients who completed treatment at our clinic, and the before-and-after photos were taken under identical conditions. |