Chipped Your Tooth While Playing Hockey? 3 Reasons To Fix It With Dental Bonding

8 June 2016
 Categories: Dentist, Blog

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Playing an impact sport like hockey can pose a risk to the health of your teeth, which is why using a mouth guard is so common. Unfortunately, accidents can happen even when additional safety equipment is used. It's possible to crack a tooth while on the ice, which will bring on the need to get it fixed as soon as possible. Dental bonding is a great way to do it, with the procedure having the following benefits.

Dental Bonding Isn't Painful

Many patients like dental bonding because it does not require any anesthesia to do it, and you won't feel any pain throughout the bonding process either. This is because dental bonding doesn't affect any nerves in the teeth, unlike what happens when getting dental implants or veneers. Only the enamel of the teeth are worked on.

The process works by making the enamel slightly rough, which will cause some enamel loss. But that rough surface is used to allow the bonding material to adhere to the tooth. It is then polished to make a completely natural look that blends in with your other teeth.

Dental Bonding Doesn't Take Long

If you are worried about missing your next hockey game, know that the process is very quick when compared to other procedures. To fix a chipped tooth, the process will take between 30 and 60 minutes. The more teeth that are chipped, the longer it will take to perform the bonding process on them.

In addition, the aftercare process is pretty straight forward and is focused more on minimizing stains within the first two days of the procedure. You will need to avoid drinking coffee or tea, but could get right back into getting on the ice again if necessary.

Dental Bonding Creates Strong Results

Once the bonding is complete, you can resume eating all of the foods that you enjoy. The material is strong enough that you do not need to baby the tooth with what you eat, and can treat it just like you did before the tooth became chipped.

Of course, everybody may not be a great candidate for dental bonding. It does require that a significant part of your tooth was not broken off when it became chipped, so that the bonding material has a strong base to attach to. Meet with a dentist in your area to find out if dental bonding will work best for you and your hockey related accident. To learn more, speak with someone like Dr. Jon Douglas Lesan, DDS, RpH, PA​.