Why does bad breath occur after fixed prosthetics?

From this article you will learn:

what to do if food gets under the crown,
what are the causes of unpleasant odor,
what to do if the crown of a tooth falls off...

The smell from under the crown is a symptom of decay of the hard tissues of the tooth and food particles falling under it. In dentistry, this problem with artificial crowns usually occurs due to the following reasons. Firstly, due to the low quality of dental crowns, which leads to their inaccurate (not tight) fit in the area of the necks of the teeth, and as a result, to the penetration of food and bacteria under the crown. As a result, tooth decay begins under the crown, i.e. caries develops.

The second main reason is related to the patients themselves - insufficient oral hygiene. For example, if a patient brushes his teeth irregularly and does not use dental floss to remove food particles stuck between the teeth after each meal, sooner and later this leads to the onset of rotting of the tooth tissue. First, this happens where the crown wraps around the neck of the tooth (Fig. 1), after which the carious process spreads deeper and deeper under the crown.

Why does the smell appear from under the crown?

As a result, food begins to get into the carious cavity that appears next to the crown (under the crown), and it all safely rots. This is the reason why there is an unpleasant odor from under the crown. Gradual decay of the tooth tissue under the crown leads to the fact that during chewing, a fracture of the crown/root of the tooth may occur, or the crown may simply fall out (Fig. 2-3).

Well, there is one more point that we forgot to mention, and which can also give rise to these problems - these are the mistakes of the orthopedic dentist when cementing the crown. And in the event that the artificial crown falls out along with the stump tab, the reason is a violation of the technique of fixing the stump tab in the root canal (we will talk about this in more detail below).

Why is this happening?

Let's look at the probable causes of this problem:

The crown does not fit tightly to the natural tooth, which leads to the smallest pieces of food getting under the artificial product. As a result, the leftover food begins to rot, which causes the bad smell.
A tooth on which caries is actively developing is subject to prosthetics. Under the crown, further destruction of the unit is observed, sometimes this process is accompanied by an unpleasant odor.
Using low-quality dental cement, which begins to oxidize upon contact with saliva.
Poor quality oral hygiene. Sometimes the crown does not play a role at all, and bad breath is caused by poor brushing of the teeth.

What to do if a crown falls out -

The simplest option is when the crown falls out not because of carious destruction of the tooth tissue underneath, but because of poor cement fixation of the crown on the tooth. The main reasons for the loss in this case: mistakes by the dentist when fixing the crown with permanent cement, low clinical height of the crown (in this case, the crown will always fall out with regularity). In this case, it is enough to immediately contact your dentist to have a new crown fixed on your tooth.

1) What to do if a crown with a pin falls out -

Often, when preparing a tooth for prosthetics, a pin or stump inlay is fixed in the root canal. If your crown and pin fall out, this is again due to poor quality work by dentists. The fact is that severely damaged tooth crowns (before prosthetics with crowns) are restored by good dentists not with the help of pins, but with the help of stump inlays.

How a tooth is restored using a pin and filling -

Therefore, if the crown of your tooth was almost completely destroyed and it was restored with the help of filling material and a pin, the loss of the crown will be a pattern, because such a design is simply not able to withstand normal chewing pressure. By the way, no less often in such situations, the pins lead to a root fracture, after which the tooth is removed altogether.

If such a crown falls out, then the filling material with a pin sticking out of it remains inside the crown. Of course, it is possible to simply cement all this over again in the root canal (and we are sure that you will find dentists who will be ready to do this), but this is absolutely forbidden. Here you need to restore the tooth again - preferably with a stump tab, and then make a new crown. Otherwise, you will simply lose this tooth.

2) If the crown falls out along with the stump tab -

If a badly damaged tooth was restored not with a pin, but with a stump tab, the crown may also sometimes fall out.
This is usually also due to dentist mistakes. The fact is that after fixing the stump tab in the root canal, many dentists, saving time, begin to file it with burs within 15 minutes and take an impression. The fact is that after fixing the stump tab, a whole day must pass before you can begin to adjust it with a drill. If the adjustment is made 10-20 minutes after fixation, which some dentists like to do to save time, then vibration when processing the inlay with a drill will lead to partial destruction of the cement that has not yet fully hardened. This leads to the fact that after a week, a month or six months, the crown falls out along with the stump tab.

How a tooth is restored using a stump inlay -

What to do - unlike the situation when the tooth was restored with a filling and a pin - such a structure can still be re-fixed in the root canal (without the need to replace the crown), but only if you immediately contact the dentist.

The crown lies on the gum: what to do

Very often there are cases when inflammation of the gums begins around the artificial crown - as a result of which the gums swell, grow, and chronic inflammation is constantly maintained in this place. Most often, this is due to the fact that the crown injures the edge of the gum with its overhanging edges (which should not normally exist).

In some cases, the problem can be solved by surgical adjustment of the gingival margin, i.e. when part of the gum near the crown is removed. But according to the rules, the overhanging edge of the crown, which injures the gingival margin, is a warranty case, and you have the right to demand a replacement of the crown (if the warranty period has not yet expired, which is usually 1 year). We hope that our article was useful to you!

Sources:

1. Personal experience as a dentist, 2. “Orthopedic dentistry. Textbook" (Trezubov V.N.), 3. "Orthopedic treatment with fixed prostheses" (Rozenshtil S.F.).

When should you sound the alarm?

How to understand that the smell is associated specifically with dental prosthetics? In fact, it's simple. If halitosis is the cause of poor-quality crown installation, at least one of the following symptoms must additionally be present:

Loose fit of the crown to the gum.
The occurrence of swelling of soft tissues.
Painful sensations under the crown.
The gap between the gum and the beginning of the prosthesis has a dark, unusual color.

If at least one of the signs is observed, you should not wait for complications, immediately go to the dentist.

The appearance of holes in teeth: causes

As such, there are many reasons for the occurrence of holes in teeth due to carious lesions; they are divided into two large categories:

Maintaining an unhealthy lifestyle: disrupted diet and eating schedule, bad habits (smoking, systematic consumption of large quantities of alcoholic beverages, drug addiction), neglect of the rules of personal hygiene (oral care);
Category of external causes independent of the person himself: genetic inheritance, gender characteristics, malocclusion.

Among the reasons for these two categories, the most common are:

Individual physiological characteristics. Often, the formation of cavities in teeth is predetermined by the low quality of their enamel, sparsely set teeth, and malocclusion. If you have “gaps” between your teeth, pay attention to hygiene and be sure to use dental floss after every meal. Remove food debris that may accumulate between teeth to prevent tooth decay and resulting holes. If you have an incorrect bite, this ideally needs to be corrected, since in this case the enamel wears out much faster and the teeth become defenseless against bacteria;
Climatic conditions of residence can also affect the frequent occurrence of this problem. Bad water, lack of nutrients in the soil - all this not only does not prevent, but even contributes to the appearance of caries in residents of these areas;
Poor nutrition. If a person actively consumes high-carbohydrate foods, the occurrence of cavities cannot be avoided. Nutrition must be systematized and brought to a stable schedule.

It is worth noting the fact that most often, holes in the teeth appear in women, especially during breastfeeding and pregnancy.

Naturally, it does not happen that a person went to bed in the evening with a completely intact tooth, and woke up the next morning to find a hole in it. The process of cavity formation is gradual:

Initial stage. The enamel becomes dark; it is important not to skip this stage, since by taking measures (by seeking professional cleaning from a dentist) you can avoid the occurrence of caries. Often, the dentist prescribes the use of a specialized medicated tooth powder, which is used to treat caries much more effectively than toothpastes;
Stage of superficial damage. The damage extends to the top layer of the tooth. This stage is accompanied by increased sensitivity of the tooth when eating food that is too hot or too cold; there is no painful sensation as such;
Middle stage. The damage spreads to the dentin, a microscopic hole appears, which can cause the first noticeable discomfort in the form of unpleasant sensations during eating;
Final stage. The hole becomes noticeable, pain appears, and blood vessels and nerves may be affected. This stage may be accompanied by pulpitis.

How to solve this problem?

At home, this situation can only be dealt with if the cause of the unpleasant odor is poor oral hygiene. Experts recommend using a medium-hard toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, irrigator and refreshing mouthwash. If the problem is not solved in this way, all that remains is to visit a dentist.

When you visit a specialist, you will most likely have to remove the crown. This way, the doctor will be able to understand what exactly caused the bad odor. If caries is detected, it is eliminated. To re-fix the crown, better cement compounds are used. If the cause of the smell was a medical mistake, the idea is that the work should be redone completely free of charge.

How to save teeth

In order for rotten teeth to remain only in our nightmares, it is necessary to treat dental diseases in a timely manner, as well as observe the rules of oral hygiene. Visit your dentist once every six months, even if nothing bothers you. It is better to give up cigarettes completely, because black enamel and rotten teeth are only a small part of the possible consequences of a bad habit. And, of course, don’t forget about a balanced diet (food should contain as many healthy vitamins and minerals as possible). Remember, everyone can have a beautiful and healthy smile!

Preventive actions

In order to avoid such a nuisance, it is recommended to choose only a prestigious dental clinic for dental prosthetics, where competent specialists work. You should not enroll in unknown institutions or dentistry that does not provide the necessary documentation on the qualifications of specialists.

It is also necessary to strictly adhere to hygiene rules. Provide the necessary care twice a day: brushing teeth, using mouthwash and irrigator. If you feel that there is an unpleasant odor coming from under the crown, you should not delay your visit to the doctor to avoid possible complications.

How to protect yourself from complications of dental diseases

To avoid any complications, it is best to prevent the diseases themselves. There is nothing complicated here:

1. Brushing your teeth twice daily. In this case, it is necessary to change your toothbrush in a timely manner (usually once every three months) and carefully choose toothpaste, taking into account the doctor’s recommendations;
2. Regular visits to the dentist. If you go to the doctor every six months, you will be able to either completely avoid caries, or cure it at the earliest stage - quickly and without any discomfort;
3. If a tooth has been removed or deformed (part of it has broken off, a filling has fallen out), you also need the help of a doctor. Such violations spoil the bite, and the load on neighboring teeth will increase. They will become more vulnerable to adverse effects.

Of course, to avoid complications, you should immediately consult a specialist as soon as a pathological process or painful sensations are noticed.