How soon should I see a dentist after I break a crown or post off my tooth?

Hi,

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I have seen the image enclosed (attachment removed to protect the patient's identity) and I am a Maxillofacial surgeon. I can understand your concern, but the prognosis for this tooth is very poor. You should visit your dentist immediately for extraction of the remaining part of the root stump left. If the remaining root stump is not extracted, the tooth infection can aggravate. It may be painless in some individuals, you will not know how the infection spreads further. So better not to risk delaying the procedure. If the post or the root piece was intact, you still would have had a better prognosis for either repeating the root canal or for fixing the crown back in place. But on visual observation, I can say that re-root canal treatment also may cause failure again, and so this tooth remaining has to be extracted. By taking support of the adjacent teeth, you can either go for bridging or if you want to get a single implant done at the area after extraction, that is an option you can explore as well. Dental implants are better in comparison to bridges after you get the tooth extracted.

Hi,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Please do not do that. Wait till your next appointment. You cannot fix it back as well because part of the tooth root is out. Fixing back with a temporary cement will only aggravate the tooth condition in your case. You can start lukewarm salt water rinsing meanwhile five to six times a day to avert potential root infection. You can follow this for a week. You can also use Clohex mouthwash (Chlorhexidine Gluconate) twice a day.