Broken or Loose Crown Or Bridge

If your crown or bridge is off or loose, there’s no need to panic—but you will need to call our office to schedule an appointment as soon as possible.

Crown or Bridge Off

Leaving a crown or bridge off for a long period can lead to problems such as your teeth shifting, bacteria entering the affected area, and your unprotected tooth or teeth breaking.

In the meantime, you can do the following until you’re seen in our office:

• Try placing the crown or bridge back in place using temporary cement (found at pharmacies).
• If you don’t feel comfortable with the above step, place the crown or bridge in a plastic bag to keep from losing it and bring it with you to your appointment. We prefer that you leave it off if you’re concerned about swallowing it!
• For an anterior (front) crown or bridge, use temporary cement to place it back in position if you’re concerned about how it looks. Otherwise, place the crown or bridge in a plastic bag and bring it with you to your appointment.

Loose Crown or Bridge

If your crown or bridge feels loose, we’ll be able to determine the best course of action once we see you in our office.

For a loose crown, we’ll typically be able to remove the crown, clean it, and then recement it.

For a loose bridge, we’ll do the same if we can remove it without damaging the teeth holding the bridge. Sometimes we find it best to wait until a bridge is completely off on its own before recementing it.

In the meantime:

• Avoid chewing on the loose crown or bridge.
• Do not pull or tug on your crown or bridge.
• Rinse with warm salt water to help keep the area clean and to help relieve any sensitivity.
• Brush and floss very gently.