Chipped Tooth Repair Cost in the UK

Chipped Tooth Repair Cost in the UK

1st February 2022

Enamel on a tooth is mighty hard. Made of calcium phosphate, it is harder than gold or silver. But that does not mean it is indestructible. It is a nasty feeling. The tongue would keep returning to the serrated edges of the crack. Home remedies do no good at all. No way but to take a trip to the dentist’s chair.

Why do teeth chip?

There are three main reasons.

The first is a small piece of stone in food. Nasty, but happens at times.
The other is a fall, perhaps from a bike or skateboard.
The last does not happen unless you are careless. Regularly sucking on ice cubes causes the tooth to become weak as its temperature changes from freezing to 98° F, the normal temperature of the mouth. After a year or two, a part of the tooth might come apart.

How to repair a chipped tooth?

There are many ways in which a dentist might repair a chipped tooth. It usually depends on the extent of damage and your budget.

The very first step of the dental treatment is to have an oral x-ray done to assess the damage. A chip might be the sign of a larger weakening of the tooth structure. If there is an assurance that there are no hidden caries, the dentist would advise you of options.

1. Crown

It is the traditional way to repair a damaged tooth. A crown is a cap, made to order, to fit the tooth that is damaged.

Traditionally, a crown was made of gold. But better materials are available now. The one used most often is Ni-Cr alloy. Other materials include porcelain with metal scaffolding. The latter is more natural. It is durable and cheap.

When being fitted with a Ni-Cr alloy crown or CEREC crown, ask the dentist to certify it as MRI safe. Neither nickel nor chromium poses any danger, but the alloy cannot contain any ferrous component.

An impression of your jaw would be taken on soft, soap-like material. After a few days, a crown would be fitted on top. With care, a crown can last at least a decade.

2. Veneer

Crown is a perfect solution for molars that are out of sight. If you have chipped an incisor at the front, the go-to option is veneer. Front teeth are used to tear meat. Since we eat cooked food, they do not need to have the bite force our ancestors needed.

A tooth veneer is a small piece of synthetic material shaped like a shell. It is carefully glued onto the damaged tooth and hides the damage. A dental veneer is, unfortunately, not strong. Eventually, it will detach, and the process has to be repeated.

3. Bonding

The tooth-coloured material is applied during dental bonding and hardened with UV light. The material is a type of resin applied to the surface. The dentist would shape it with a scalpel and make it as close to usual as possible.

UV light is applied through a tiny handheld device. The hardened resin might be filed to give it a normal texture. In the end, the dentist would ask you to bite on a piece of paper to find if the bite of the upper and lower jaw match each other perfectly.

Note that corresponding teeth of the upper and lower jaw keep each other in place. If a tooth is missing, say the upper first premolar on the left side, after a few years the corresponding lower premolar would slowly erupt or move out of its socket.

That is why a damaged tooth must be repaired as quickly as possible.

4. Root canal

The tooth treatment is reputed to be the scariest. However, modern RCT methods are far less painless than 2-3 decades back. It also comprises fitting your tooth with a crown.

But in the first option above (crowning without root canal), the tooth inside remained alive. It has functioning blood vessels and a root that is completely normal.

With a root canal, the dentist essentially excavated the tooth material, leaving only a shell. The tooth is no longer alive. In the last step, the dentist fits a porcelain crown on top. It can take 2-4 visits in all.

Now about the pain. There is little pain from the procedure itself. However, the fact that your mouth is kept wide open, and tools move about inside while a dazzling light shines in your eyes, is enough to scare most patients.

Be assured it sounds worse than it is.

5. Filing

If the chipping is very minor, the dentist might simply hone it and make it smoother. Some have very pointy molars. There are four clear, sharp cusps that bite into food and mash it to a pulp.

These can break off and the usual treatment is to file it down so that the tongue does not cut itself.

Chipped Tooth Repair Cost UK

It would depend on the procedure. If bonding is performed, the cost is between £200-£350. If you go for crowning, it would set you back between £600 and £900, depending on the establishment and the type of crown. Zirconia veneers are more expensive.

Full-fledged root canal costs between £1100 and £1500. The price varies quite widely because of the overheads and margin. At Natural Smiles you are assured of economical treatment. We aim to provide affordable dental care to everyone and the rates we charge are one of the most affordable.

Take care of your chipped tooth immediately

The worst thing you can do is ignore the problem. A chipped tooth won’t go away. The uneven edges won’t wear down naturally because the hardest substance we usually eat is buttered toast.

When neglected, it can give rise to bigger problems. Cracks would develop that might cause you to lose an entire tooth. Your only option then is extraction and a tooth implant. It is a lengthy procedure and quite expensive.

Make an appointment with our cosmetic dentists as soon as possible and we shall have your tooth restored in no time at all.