What to do if you swallowed a tooth crown.

Tip #1: Don't panic

Often people can involuntarily swallow a fragment of the crown while eating, while chewing it, for example, with meat or even with tomatoes (i.e. with soft food), or trouble can happen in their sleep. If such a situation occurs in your life, then try not to panic. Indeed, in most cases this is not fraught with serious complications. Modern artificial crowns and dentures are made of safe and hypoallergenic materials, i.e. At least you won’t get poisoned, and your body won’t become intoxicated. If you swallowed the crown part of a natural decayed tooth that broke off, then the situation is similar.

It is important not to panic if the product is swallowed

“In general, such an unpleasant situation can only happen in a few cases. For example, if the service life of the prosthesis itself and the cement with which it was secured has expired, i.e. the structure simply disintegrated. Or the doctor initially used low-quality materials and adhesives for fixation in his work. This often happens with temporary structures that are not intended for cement fixation and long-term use. Well, sometimes the reason may lie in the fact that the patient himself puts an unbearable and completely inadequate load on a natural or artificial tooth; he likes to chew nuts, crackers, and open bottles. Also, the cause can be any injury received during an accident, a fall, a fight, or playing dangerous sports,” says Ambalova E.I., dental therapist, orthopedist.

Installation of a bridge: main contraindications and indications

Like any procedure, the installation of bridges in Minsk (Belarus) is not performed by everyone due to existing contraindications, including:

Absence of 4 or more incisors in a row, absence of the 1st molar or 2 premolars;
Patient's tendency to grind teeth;
Severe forms of periodontal disease, periodontitis, aggravated diseases of the oral cavity, the presence of diseases of the bone tissue of the jaw;
Bite pathology;
General contraindications for surgery: allergies to medications, problems with blood clotting, mental illness, etc.

Indications for the installation of dental bridges are:

Missing 1-4 front teeth;
Absence of no more than 1 chewing tooth.
It is very important that the teeth adjacent to the lost ones are suitable for use as supports.

Stages of installation and manufacture of a bridge prosthesis

People who want to install a dental bridge always want to know exactly how the procedure goes, how long it will take, and how much it will ultimately cost.

The installation of a dental bridge takes place in several stages:

Preparatory stage: examination and assessment of the condition of the oral cavity; if there are problems (for example, caries), sanitation is carried out. The doctor then performs a series of procedures to determine whether the patient's supporting teeth can withstand the expected load. Afterwards, the preparation of the supporting teeth begins, which may include depulpation and canal filling.
Making a bridge prosthesis in the laboratory. The doctor takes impressions of the patient’s jaws, and dentures are made from them in a dental laboratory, which takes from 1 to 3 weeks. While permanent bridges are being made, patients are asked to wear temporary dentures.
Fitting and fixation of the prosthesis in the oral cavity. The finished prosthesis is tried on and checked to ensure it matches the color of the patient’s natural teeth. If necessary, adjustments and color correction are performed, which also takes some time. If everything is fine with the prosthesis and it fits tightly on the teeth, it is placed on permanent cement.

Manufacturing technologies for dental bridges

Bridges can be made from different materials, the most popular of which are:

Metal ceramics;
Zirconium dioxide;
Metal-free ceramics E-Max.

Tip #2: Assess the situation and be prepared for complications

If you swallowed a tooth crown, what should you do? First of all, try to be near the mirror and assess the situation. Consider the magnitude of the “loss.” Did the crown break off partially or was it completely swallowed? In the first case, you should be wary and closely monitor your condition, and it is also advisable to see a doctor as soon as possible, because the piece could have sharp edges that could injure the gastrointestinal tract and esophagus.

Our gastrointestinal tract is designed in such a way that other objects that are no larger than a tablet in size can freely pass through it along with food. But sometimes troubles still happen. Let's look at what other complications this situation is fraught with:

internal bleeding,
perforation of the wall of the stomach or intestines,
intestinal obstruction.

If you have alarming symptoms, you should consult a doctor.
So, if the crown is intact, smooth and round, then it will not cause harm, and in this case, doctors advise sticking to a wait-and-see approach in the first few days. Most likely, either a natural or an artificial tooth will leave the body in the most natural way - depending on the individual characteristics of the body, this can take up to 4 days.

But if you believe that the edges of the swallowed fragment could be sharp and want to protect yourself, then it’s time to see a doctor. You should also be alerted to the alarming symptoms accompanying complications if you monitor your condition for several days rather than immediately go to a specialist: nausea or vomiting with blood, feces with blood, wheezing or wheezing, shortness of breath, signs of general intoxication of the body.

How to know when it’s time to change your denture - symptoms

You can determine when the crown on a tooth needs to be replaced by the following symptoms, signs or manifestations:

the prosthesis is wobbly
the prosthesis has fallen out: under no circumstances should you put it back in place yourself - it is better to rinse it, wrap it in a sterile bandage and consult a dentist as soon as possible,
the gums become red, swollen or begin to bleed,
there is a metallic or sour taste in the mouth, there may be a tingling sensation due to galvanism,
a tooth or area of the jaw hurts: the pain appears with pressure or does not depend on irritants,
the prosthesis is damaged: there are chips or cracks,
Closing the jaws causes discomfort.

Of course, the need for replacement is determined only by an orthopedic dentist. If the structure is held fairly tightly in place, then an X-ray examination is performed to diagnose or exclude complications - cracks, cysts, bone atrophy, caries, and to assess the quality of the previous obturation of the root canals.

Tip #3: Visit the Emergency Room and Get an X-Ray

If a problem arises with a living tooth in which the crown has fallen off or broken off, then most people think first of all to visit the dentist. Although in reality, you first need to go to a place where you can get an X-ray of the gastrointestinal tract. In dentistry, you will not get examinations of those organs that are located below the head, but, for example, in the emergency room there are devices installed that will help you quickly take pictures of the desired area and study the situation. After the photographs have been taken, you can additionally consult a surgeon or gastroenterologist.

It is advisable to undergo an X-ray examination of the stomach

If crowns or elements of braces (the problem is also quite common) get into the gastrointestinal tract and small intestine, doctors resort to surgical intervention only in the most extreme cases. Basically, experts choose a wait-and-see approach, prescribing laxatives and enemas to remove foreign materials from the body, washing the stomach and intestines.

“Two years ago there was a situation where I swallowed a crown from a tooth, or rather not a complete crown, but a part of it that broke off. I immediately got scared and went to the doctor, they took an x-ray. The pictures showed where she was stuck, the doctor prescribed all sorts of pills. But nothing helped, it seemed to have grown into me. After a while, I began to notice tingling sensations on the right side and felt pain, so they scheduled surgery under anesthesia. It’s unpleasant, of course, that it all ended like this, but at least she remained alive. And I heard in the hospital that there can also be deaths from this, especially if the patient did not seek help in time...”
Karina, review from the dental portal gidpozubam.ru

Causes of crown loss

In modern dentistry, high-quality materials are used for dental prosthetics, but we should not forget that the crown remains not a natural tooth, but a special design. It consists of the body itself, simulating a tooth, a pin for fastening, and a cementing material.

The latter must be of high quality , applied in accordance with technology and in sufficient quantity. If at least one of these conditions is not met, instead of the 5-10 years guaranteed by the doctor, the crown will last no more than a year.

The success of the procedure largely depends on how accurately and correctly the doctor performed the preparatory procedures:

Tip #4: Adjust your diet

In order for the body to cleanse itself by accelerating intestinal motility, and for the crown to have a greater chance of coming out naturally, you can eat corn, whole grains, solid vegetables and fruits, and it is recommended to drink a lot of water. For example, the same corn passes through the intestines practically unchanged, which means that the crown has exactly the same chances.

If you swallow a crown, do not under any circumstances try to induce vomiting to get it out. This is fraught with the fact that in this case it can get into the respiratory tract and lungs, injuring the intestines, which is truly life-threatening.

Tip #5: Make an appointment with your dentist

The dentist will help you restore the damage and restore the beauty and functionality of your tooth. But here it is important to take into account that if the artificial crown has been swallowed completely or a large part of it is missing, then it will have to be completely replaced, because In this case, it will be simply impossible to restore the structure. If the top layer has chipped, for example, the crown was made of metal-ceramics or ceramics, and a small piece of ceramic has fallen off, then the doctor will carry out the restoration right at the appointment.

A chip in the upper can be corrected by restoration without removing the crown.

Similarly, a crown will have to be installed on a decayed natural tooth, or, depending on the scale of the destruction, it will be possible to get away with either a composite build-up, or the tooth will have to be built up first using a pin or stump tab.

In general, be sure to visit the dentist every six months. After all, then a specialist will be able to identify the problem in time during a preventive examination and eliminate it before an unpleasant situation associated with swallowing a crown occurs to you. If you ignore going to the doctor, then you simply may not notice, for example, that a tooth has become loose or needs restoration, or that an artificial crown has already expired or needs to be replaced.

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Possible options

If the old crown can be used, it will be reinstalled using fresh temporary dental cement. The patient will have the opportunity to wear the crown again for some time; if discomfort does not arise, the fixation will be performed with permanent cement. If wearing it is impossible, the dentist will offer to make a new crown and give reasons for his recommendations.

Minor damage to the crown (chips) can be repaired. Significant damage cannot be repaired. A new product will need to be manufactured.

Comments

I have a crown on a post. If I suddenly accidentally swallow it along with the pin, how dangerous will it be?

Alexey (03/09/2019 at 21:40) Reply to comment

Editorial staff of the portal UltraSmile.ru (03/11/2019 at 09:11) Reply to comment

My son had a temporary filling with arsenic placed on Friday, and he swallowed it on Saturday. We won't be able to see the doctor until Monday. What to do and why is it dangerous?

Victoria Kalinina (03/17/2019 at 11:47 am) Reply to comment

Editorial staff of the portal UltraSmile.ru (03/24/2019 at 09:18) Reply to comment

Does it make a difference what you swallowed: a piece of a natural tooth or an artificial crown?

Vlasov Yu.V. (04/12/2019 at 16:13) Reply to comment

Editorial staff of the portal UltraSmile.ru (04/15/2019 at 08:57) Reply to comment

My child swallowed a baby tooth two days ago and feels great, but for some reason nothing comes out naturally. When is it time to start worrying?

Alina (04/28/2019 at 15:04) Reply to comment

Editorial staff of the portal UltraSmile.ru (05/04/2019 at 11:02) Reply to comment

I, 10/22/20, swallowed a dental bridge of 7 teeth along with food. A painful state, now everything is behind them. 02.11.20 they left.

Natalya (11/02/2020 at 12:40 pm) Reply to comment

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Doctor's actions

If a foreign body causes discomfort after swallowing, you should consult a gastroenterologist. The specialist will interview the patient to identify the type of foreign body and its size. After which the following procedures are prescribed:

X-ray examination to identify the location of a foreign body;
gastric lavage;
enema (if the object is located in the intestines);
use of an esophagoscope - prescribed in difficult cases when a pin is swallowed (a foreign body is removed using the device under anesthesia).

After removing the foreign particle with a special device, you need to be observed by a specialist for some time to diagnose damage to the digestive organs.