Your front teeth make up an important part of your smile and confident personality. Due to their location in the mouth, even a gentle force can make them fall out as they take the full blow of a knock or impact. Although the enamel, which makes the outer part of your teeth, is the hardest known mineralized tissue of the human body sudden blow by falling or biting on hard things can chip it off or fracture it. Some of you have slightly proclined teeth which are more prone to fracture particularly if the teeth have already some degree of dental decay.

The most important question is how a broken or fractured should be treated. Following points should be taken into mind on part of the patient.

• Visit and consult your dentist as soon as possible without wasting any time,
• Your tooth can be harmed or become infected in case of an unnecessary delay leading to its permanent loss,
• For emergency care, take an over the counter painkiller and rinse your mouth with saline gargles,
• If the chipped off part of your tooth has some sharp edges, it can damage tour gums and tongue. Cover the sharp edges with chewing gum for the meantime,
• Take soft diet and avoid biting on the damaged tooth.

Treatment of a broken or damaged tooth depends upon the severity of the condition. Following steps will be taken by your dentist.

• The dentist will assess the degree of fracture. He will see if only the enamel is damaged or the blow has involved the dentine and pulp. Clinical and radiographic examination will be carried out,
• In case of simple fracture involving a chipped of portion of enamel, the dentist will repair it by doing a simple tooth bonded composite filling of the lost portion,
• In case of a complex fracture involving dentine as well, the dentist will replace the dentine portion with another filling material such as Glass Ionomer or a pin or post retained restoration before replacing the enamel portion with esthetic composite filling,
• When the nerves of the tooth are involved in the fracture line, it becomes mandatory for the dentist to carry out the root canal treatment followed by placement of a  pin or post retained restoration and dental crown afterwards,
• In case of children, the assessment of apex closure of front teeth is also carried out. Tooth apex closure is not complete in children and placement of medicaments which stimulate apex closure is carried out in such cases.