dental hygiene

What to Do If Your Wisdom Tooth Breaks

2 min read

Start With What You Can Do at Home

Rinse your mouth gently with warm salt water. This keeps the area cleaner without irritating it. If there’s bleeding, bite softly on clean gauze for a few minutes.

• A sharp edge is the annoying part, especially when your tongue keeps finding it. Don’t keep touching it.

• Pain that comes and goes deserves attention too. A broken wisdom tooth doesn’t need to hurt constantly before it becomes a problem.

• A small piece of tooth came out? Keep it if you can, although your dentist probably won’t be able to simply glue it back.

Don’t Try to Fix the Tooth Yourself

It sounds obvious, but people do try. Filing down a sharp corner at home is a bad move because you don’t know how deep the break goes. Superglue is an even worse idea. Please don’t.

What Your Dentist May Do

The dentist will usually examine the broken area and may take an X-ray to see what’s happening below the gum. From there, the treatment depends on how badly the wisdom tooth has fractured and whether the tooth can realistically be kept.

With wisdom teeth, extraction is often the option I’d favor when the tooth is badly damaged or difficult to clean. Saving a wisdom tooth sounds appealing until you remember where it sits and how often it causes trouble.

Disclaimer

The information shared in our articles is intended for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered a substitute for professional dental advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Every smile is unique, and only a qualified dental professional can assess your individual oral health needs. If you have any concerns, please book an appointment with our team or consult your local dentist.

Read our Full Disclaimer.
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