What are the best options for a chipped front tooth?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am 28 years old. I have had multiple fillings on my front four teeth throughout my life. I lightly chipped my front tooth a few years ago and just completed an invisalign treatment. When completing a scan for my invisalign retainer, my dentist attempted to fix my chipped tooth by making a bigger chip and filling it with bonding. The bonding fell out a few hours later on my way home, and then I saw a dentist first thing in the morning to fix my chipped tooth before a work trip. The dentist said my front teeth are already affected by multiple cavities, they are always going to chip, so the best course of action would be to get four crowns for my four front teeth so they will all match.

Does it make sense to get four crowns?
Are there any other alternatives?

The attached first picture is my smile after bonding was put in, and the second picture was after bonding fell out.

Please help.

Thank you.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I read your query and can understand your concern.

Unfortunately, no pictures were uploaded. I can agree with your dentist on a couple of things.

1. Multiple fillings affect the tooth and the bonding area of the filling material (when more sound tooth structure is present, then there is a better bonding effect and result).

2. Symmetry of esthetics: As you know, our left teeth should be mirror images of our right ones for better esthetics. So, we usually carry on the treatment in even numbers of teeth (2,4,6), especially in the esthetics zone or front zone.

The material of crowns plays a role. For my patients, crowns are the least used treatment because they are a bit destructive to the tooth (part of the tooth will be removed all around all four anterior teeth). Another option is veneers, which require minimal removal of tooth structure, mainly from the front side of the tooth (tooth sides and back surface, in many cases, are not touched). This, of course, depends on how healthy the tooth structure is present after the previous fillings. If the fillings are big or you have bad biting habits like biting your nails or pencils, a crown will be the solution. Having a minimal veneer could be an option. But I think it is necessary to have a second opinion and visit another dentist if you are not satisfied.

I hope this answers your query.

Let me assist you further.

Thanks.