Six Reasons You May Not Be A Good Candidate For Dental Bonding
There are not too many dental emergencies that will send you to the dentist faster than a chipped tooth. This is especially true if the chip occurs in a front tooth. The good news is dental bonding can quickly fix your tooth, and make it look brand new. Unfortunately, not everyone is a candidate for this procedure. Here are a few reasons that you may not be.
What Is Dental Bonding?
Dental bonding is a form of adhesive dentistry in which your dentist may be able to take tooth-colored resin, paint it onto the surface of your tooth, and then harden it using a special type of light. It an be used to repair chipped or cracked teeth, as well as hide discoloration. It can also be used to help to fill in gaps, make teeth appear longer, and create a natural-looking filling. The process can normally be done in one trip to your dental office, and in less than an hour.
What Will Keep You From Being A Good Candidate?
If your tooth is missing too much of the tooth's surface - Dental bonding is ideal for patient's who are only missing about 1/3 of their tooth's surface. If the missing part of your tooth comprises more than this, dental bonding may be able to be used, but it may not be a good long term solution. Your dentist may need to use other types of dental treatment to fix your problem.
If you are suffering from cracked tooth syndrome - While dental bonding can be used to cover small cracks in the surface of your tooth, these cracks are usually just in the enamel or dentin of your tooth. If you are suffering from cracked tooth syndrome, the crack may extend into the pulp of your tooth and may need to be treated with a root canal and a crown.
If you are a smoker - Although the resin used in dental bonding is stain resistant, it is very porous. Smoking will stain your teeth and tongue and can cause the bonding materials to yellow over time. There are other dental materials such as crowns that will resist stains better.
If you suffer from bruxism - Dental bonding can be chipped more easily than your natural teeth or other dental materials. You may not be a candidate if you suffer from bruxism or grind your teeth. Although this behavior can take place at any time of the day, it often takes place during the night as you sleep. You may not even be aware that you do it. Your dentist will often be able to tell if you engage in this habit by the condition of your teeth.
If you are looking for tooth whitening for your whole mouth - Dental discoloration can be caused by many different factors. Some of these causes are medications, diseases, foods, drinks, or injury. Dental bonding can be used to cover areas of tooth discoloration, especially on your front teeth. Unfortunately, it may not be a reasonable solution if you are trying to whiten numerous teeth, or your whole mouth. If this is the case, speak to your dentist about having your teeth professionally whitened.
If you are looking for a permanent solution - Dental bonding is designed to last anywhere from three to ten years, but it is not a permanent solution. It will need touching up from time to time due to the bonding material's life being reduced by one or more habits that many people have. Some of these include:
- Chewing ice, hard candies, pencils, or unpopped popcorn kernels
- Biting fingernails, pens, and pencils
- Opening bottles and other packaging with your teeth, and more
There is no one dental procedure that is a good fit for everyone. For more information about dental bonding and whether it will work for you, contact an experienced dentist like Richard M Holmes DMD PA.
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