It doesn't hurt. Can it wait?

Days, yes; months, no. Painless chips still spread under chewing force, and the small-repair window is the inexpensive one. A quick exam tells you which kind you have.

Will a bonded chip be visible?

Not when it's done with care. We build the resin up in thin layers, matching shade as we go, so the repaired spot blends into the tooth around it. Restoring a chipped front tooth with bonding is routine work in this office.

Why do my teeth keep chipping?

When chips keep happening, something upstream is driving them — grinding at night, a bite that hammers certain edges, or big older fillings that left the surrounding enamel thin and brittle. Repairing chip after chip without asking why is treating the symptom; one exam conversation about the cause is worth more than the next three repairs.

symptoms

Chipped a tooth. Size decides the story.

A chipped tooth can mean almost anything — a rough spot your tongue keeps returning to, a missing corner you can see in the mirror, or a piece of molar that surrendered to a popcorn kernel. Two questions set the urgency: how much tooth is gone, and does it hurt. If the answer to the second is yes, or the broken surface shows a pink dot at its center, stop reading and call 540-885-8037 today — that's emergency-page territory.

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Triage by size

Tiny and smooth-able: painless, cosmetic, often polished out in minutes. Book at your convenience — but do book, because chips concentrate chewing stress and tend to grow. A visible corner with no pain: bonding territory, usually fixed in one visit; save any piece in milk on the chance it can be reattached. A big break, new sensitivity, or a molar giving way over an old filling: that's a crown conversation, this week — cover sharp edges with drugstore dental wax in the meantime.

Whatever the size, chew on the other side until it's seen. Teeth don't heal; they only get repaired. We're on the Augusta Health campus in Fishersville, a short drive from Staunton and Waynesboro, and a quick look will size the chip honestly.

Questions we hear in the chair

It doesn't hurt. Can it wait?: Days, yes; months, no. Painless chips still spread under chewing force, and the small-repair window is the inexpensive one. A quick exam tells you which kind you have.
Will a bonded chip be visible?: Not when it's done with care. We build the resin up in thin layers, matching shade as we go, so the repaired spot blends into the tooth around it. Restoring a chipped front tooth with bonding is routine work in this office.
Why do my teeth keep chipping?: When chips keep happening, something upstream is driving them — grinding at night, a bite that hammers certain edges, or big older fillings that left the surrounding enamel thin and brittle. Repairing chip after chip without asking why is treating the symptom; one exam conversation about the cause is worth more than the next three repairs.

Clinical content reviewed by Dr. Brian Podbesek, Lead Dentist.

On Medical Park Drive since 2014. . Call for current availability.