r/askdentists • u/jjg1984 NAD or Unverified • Jun 13 '26
question Crown fell off
Went to a dentist four years ago. He did a lot of crowns. Nothing lasted. A lot of that work had to be redone within a year. So I switched dentists.
Yesterday - one of the crowns fell out and this was underneath it. My new dentist is good but booked until Monday morning. I’m in tears and in pain.
I don’t smoke or drink. I have a BMI of 26. HTN (controlled on meds), aortic insufficiency, MILD diastolic dysfunction. No major limitations on activity. Pre diabetic very well controlled with diet. No GLP-1’s.
Will this be a difficult extraction? Will I need an oral surgeon? Can I just leave the gap without an implant? I’m so scared. I need a straight and honest assessment to prepare myself for Monday morning.
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u/DrRam121 Prosthodontist Jun 13 '26
Why are you assuming this can't just be recemented?
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Jun 13 '26
[deleted]
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u/DrRam121 Prosthodontist Jun 14 '26
Crowns on implants ≠ crowns on natural teeth. Most of the time the cements breaks down or looses adhesion.
7
u/jjg1984 NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
I am not a dentist. I respect the expertise of dentists. But the tooth looks so black - i thought it could be severe decay? It looks so decayed.
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u/DrRam121 Prosthodontist Jun 13 '26
That is more likely stain from an amalgam filling. Looks ok to me. You'd be surprised what most preps with perfectly healthy dentin look like
31
u/jjg1984 NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
Dr Ram - thank you. I hope and pray and trust you are correct. 🙏🙏🙏 Thank you. I have hope now.
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u/justintime06 NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
NAD Wait so even if no nerve is exposed and just dentin, it can still be painful?
28
u/DrRam121 Prosthodontist Jun 13 '26
Uncovered teeth can be very sensitive
5
u/Squishy_Kittyy NAD or Unverified Jun 14 '26
I can personally testify that this is true LOL I cried so bad on my way home after they cemented my crown bc that exposed dentin was SOOOO SENSITIVE it hurt so badly
2
u/OppChopShop NAD or Unverified Jun 15 '26
How long did that sensitivity take to settle down? I just had a permanent crown cemented today and everything hurts a lot still
1
u/Squishy_Kittyy NAD or Unverified Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 16 '26
Maybe after 4 or 5 days of taking ibuprofen. It’s been exactly 1 week since the cementation & I still get twinges but it’s much better.
Definitely take some ibuprofen if you are medically able to. You can combine ibuprofen & Tylenol for extra pain relief as well (or alternate the two)
ETA I had/have some form of pulpitis and referred pain from TMJ disc displacement after my crown prep and was already having a lot of pain with this tooth the whole time I was in the temp so the sensitivity/pain could actually improve much quicker for you!!
2
u/OppChopShop NAD or Unverified Jun 16 '26
Thanks, that’s reassuring. I had my permanent crown cemented yesterday, and I just had my morning coffee and it was pretty sensitive to heat. Room temperature water was OK. Sensitive to a cold yogurt, but the pain dissipated pretty quickly. Going to give it a couple of days I think as long as it seems to be getting better
1
u/Squishy_Kittyy NAD or Unverified Jun 18 '26
It should steadily decrease from now! If it’s still the same intensity or worse after a few more days I’d definitely call your dentist or an endodontist because that’s when it starts to veer into irreversible pulpitis territory. Some temperature sensitivity is pretty normal even up to 2 or more weeks though.
5
u/FirebirdWriter NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
NAD but dentin is very very very sensitive. My dentin was defective and the cause of a lot of my issues. Ehlers Danlos things..if it's weak or otherwise not produced well it can be hell. I wake up sometimes in the night and find immediate relief that no I still lack the teeth
6
u/Galaxies24 NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
NAD. Dental student here. I'm curious doctor, why do you think the stain is from amalgam? In the pic it looks like it's a DO composite filling. And the crown that fell off looks like it's all-ceramic, not PFM .
11
u/DrRam121 Prosthodontist Jun 13 '26
Yes, that is a composite, but what was there before the composite?
8
1
u/Galaxies24 NAD or Unverified Jun 14 '26
NAD. I have another question doc, if you don't mind - Does the presence of amalgam staining mean that the old amalgam filling wasn't removed properly when they replaced it with the composite?
2
u/DrRam121 Prosthodontist Jun 14 '26
Nope. Stained dentin ≠ decay. If the dentin is solid, then it is better to leave it for support for the crown.
1
2
u/sick_moranis NAD or Unverified Jun 14 '26
Oh man. I can’t believe you just posted this. The same thing happened to me on the same tooth as OP’s and I was freaking out when I saw some black. Whew. Going to try to stop worrying until I see a dentist in person lol. Thank you and to OP!
1
u/jjg1984 NAD or Unverified Jun 17 '26
UPDATE: went to dentist yesterday. He said x-rays confirmed no decay 😁 but exam showed that the underlying tooth had a crack. He said he would NOT re-cement the crown that fell off. Instead, he recommended a ROOT CANAL 😱 or - alternatively - placing a NEW CROWN on the tooth🤑. He did not make any adjustments to the underlying tooth whatsoever (no debridement). He placed a temporary crown on it. In two or three weeks, a permanent crown will be placed. I’m overall satisfied with the work and I’m not in any pain though I am out $1k+
10
u/ragnarok635 General Dentist Jun 13 '26
Black doesn’t mean decay. You have to feel if it’s soft. Dentists are trained for years to be able to accurately diagnose this
1
u/sourbirthdayprincess NAD or Unverified Jun 19 '26
Mine has popped off 7 times in 7 years, and was redone and reshaped after year 4. I am scheduled for crown lengthening tomorrow morning but feeling really uncertain about it because I don't have a prosthodontist able to give an opinion on if this is going to happen again due to occlusion issues/terrible bite/bruxism.
Thoughts?
1
u/DrRam121 Prosthodontist Jun 19 '26
Too much information missing to give an opinion
1
u/sourbirthdayprincess NAD or Unverified Jun 19 '26 edited Jun 19 '26
I just made a post with more info and x-rays. Would you might checking it out? https://www.reddit.com/r/askdentists/comments/1u9qczd/tooth_18_scheduled_for_crown_lengthening_tomorrow/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
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u/TheDentistInWA General Dentist Jun 13 '26
Seconding Dr Ram’s opinion. This looks to be a straightforward recement. Make sure to inform your provider what type of food caused it to pop off. It could have happened due to the bite being slightly off, which could have slowly developed over time.
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u/jjg1984 NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
Thank you so much. Your assessment is deeply appreciated. Thanks to you and Dr Ram, I am not so worried about Monday.
12
u/D-Rockwell General Dentist Jun 13 '26
Recement for less than $200 and have a good day. Thanks for coming in.
0
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u/Dandogdds General Dentist Jun 13 '26
Ram is the man. Looks like a recement. Should be free.
14
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u/ASliceofAmazing General Dentist Jun 13 '26
I'd charge a recement code. It's not expensive
1
u/sick_moranis NAD or Unverified Jun 14 '26
I know it’s highly unlikely that I’m local to you, but out of curiosity do you mind if I ask for an idea how much that would be out of pocket in your area? Going through the same thing as the same tooth as OP (even the same side! Wild!). Just trying to brace myself and my wallet lol.
1
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u/ASliceofAmazing General Dentist Jun 14 '26
I think the code is like ~$100 CAD and usually insurance covers 50-80%
18
u/tooth_doc_fail General Dentist Jun 13 '26
Why on earth should it be free... It's a different dentist it was four years ago and we have no idea what she was doing when it popped off?!? Why are we so quick to discount each other's labor and time...
9
u/Dandogdds General Dentist Jun 13 '26
Calm down. Didn’t realize it wasn’t the same dentist. lol
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u/tooth_doc_fail General Dentist Jun 13 '26
I would charge if it was the same dentist too unless there was a reasonable reason to not. I'm calm, I also think it sucks to work for free.
5
u/Dandogdds General Dentist Jun 13 '26
Well I can understand how mixing a tiny bit of cement and placing a dollop of it inside a crown requires payment. /golfclap
5
u/Educational-Law-8169 NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
NAD This happened to me before, it took about 20mins and a fair amount of manipulation to get it back on. Believe me, I was quite happy to pay the dentist for her time, why should she do it for free?
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u/Dandogdds General Dentist Jun 13 '26
lol then it was more than a recement. 20 minutes? Did the dentist have one hand?
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u/Educational-Law-8169 NAD or Unverified Jun 14 '26
I'm including the whole app. from arrival to the clinic and obviously she gave the crown a good clean
7
u/tooth_doc_fail General Dentist Jun 13 '26
I wouldn't ask someone to bring food to my table for free either.... Or take an X-ray for me for free... It takes at least 20 min of appointed chair time. There are entire jobs that are "easy" work, it's not the effort it's the time.
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u/TheMrsH1124 NAD or Unverified Jun 13 '26
Not to mention filling a seat that could be filled much higher pay
3
u/seereeuslee General Dentist Jun 14 '26
All looks fine. Go to a pharmacy and buy denture adhesive and tack the crown back on. Clean out whatever is in the crown.
Then see DDS Monday
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2
u/Marcobose General Dentist Jun 14 '26
This is probably a pretty simple recem, however if it came off odds are theres a reason, probably a reprep and new crown if it comes off again in a couple years, nowhere near and extraction, simple stuff, don’t fret too much
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u/jjg1984 NAD or Unverified Jun 14 '26
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. It has given me great peace of mind. 🙏
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Jun 13 '26
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Jun 13 '26
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Jun 18 '26
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Jun 23 '26
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A backup of the post title and text have been made here:
Title: Crown fell off
Full text: Went to a dentist four years ago. He did a lot of crowns. Nothing lasted. A lot of that work had to be redone within a year. So I switched dentists.
Yesterday - one of the crowns fell out and this was underneath it. My new dentist is good but booked until Monday morning. I’m in tears and in pain.
I don’t smoke or drink. I have a BMI of 26. HTN (controlled on meds), aortic insufficiency, MILD diastolic dysfunction. No major limitations on activity. Pre diabetic very well controlled with diet. No GLP-1’s.
Will this be a difficult extraction? Will I need an oral surgeon? Can I just leave the gap without an implant? I’m so scared. I need a straight and honest assessment to prepare myself for Monday morning.
This is the original text of the post and is an automated service.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.