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Dental Health (Expert Forum)
Scratched tooth enamel?
Answered by
Private Practice
CA
Questions in the Dental Health forum are answered by Dr. Jerome Tsang and Dr. Jerome Bogin. Topics covered include bridges, cavities, crowns, and x-rays.
Scratched tooth enamel?
by Scorpio5000, Nov 04, 2009 05:10PM
Ok right I know this was a really stupid thing to do, so I don't need telling that. I've learnt my lesson, never do it again.
When was at uni few months back and me and my friends had a chinese and the BBQ ribs got caught in between my bottom front teeth. It was really annoying me, I couldn't brush it out and didn't have any floss. So I stupidly got some tweezers and tried to get it out (it didn't work and I got floss in the morning). However the tweezers I think scratched the enamel on my teeth a fair bit, I have white scratch marks on them if I dry my mouth, kinda looks like I have plaque I guess.
I went to the dentist and mentioned my teeth look like they were a bit scratched (was bit afraid to tell him why) anyway he said it was plaque and cleaned and polished them saying they were fine. However the white marks re-appeared not long after cleaning and looks like have plaque again.
What I would like to know out of interest, is if the dentist cleans my teeth on regular visits (I go every 6months) with sharp objects on the enamel that I stupidly scratched...could he possibly scratch it even more and damage my teeth in the process.
When was at uni few months back and me and my friends had a chinese and the BBQ ribs got caught in between my bottom front teeth. It was really annoying me, I couldn't brush it out and didn't have any floss. So I stupidly got some tweezers and tried to get it out (it didn't work and I got floss in the morning). However the tweezers I think scratched the enamel on my teeth a fair bit, I have white scratch marks on them if I dry my mouth, kinda looks like I have plaque I guess.
I went to the dentist and mentioned my teeth look like they were a bit scratched (was bit afraid to tell him why) anyway he said it was plaque and cleaned and polished them saying they were fine. However the white marks re-appeared not long after cleaning and looks like have plaque again.
What I would like to know out of interest, is if the dentist cleans my teeth on regular visits (I go every 6months) with sharp objects on the enamel that I stupidly scratched...could he possibly scratch it even more and damage my teeth in the process.
Doctor's Answer
by Jerome Tsang, DDS, Nov 22, 2009 11:02PM
, Nov 22, 2009 11:02PMTo: Scorpio5000
Yes, he could possibly scratch it some more but I don't believe he'll crack the enamel or cause any long term problems. Besides, we generally don't scratch it that much to clean it. I'm assuming its on the front surface where its easy to brush. It may be also possible that there's no scratch at all and it may have been there before and you are just noticing it now due to the tweezers. You can try a fluoride rinse and see if that helps to remineralize the area a bit.
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