Welcome back to Hartwell Dentistry blog. Today, we will be discussing Cracked Tooth Syndrome. Part 1 – What it is? And how will this affect you?  Part 2 – We will also discuss diagnosing a cracked tooth and possible treatments.

Cracked tooth Syndrome, or CTS, is a term used for collective symptoms and signs that is caused by a tooth with cracks. The symptoms may vary as it depends on the extent of the crack and how long the crack has been in the tooth.

CTS is usually found in our chewing teeth; molars. However cracks can be found in any tooth in the mouth.

 Causes:

• Teeth with large fillings especially ones filled with metal amalgam. Old amalgams have been shown to undergo micro-expansion and contraction with temperature change. When this happens in a non flexible structure such as enamel, internal stresses from the expansion can cause tooth to crack. For more explanation, please read our amalgam Blog
• People who clench or grind at night can put their teeth at risk. This can be especially bad for teeth that are already heavily restored as mentioned above.
• Chewing on hard foods such as ice, lollies, nuts, seeds, grains or pens
• Trauma from excessive biting forces when eating ie biting into an unexpected pip of an olive.

 What are some symptoms and signs of CTS:

Short, sharp pain on chewing, or when releasing pressure from the effected tooth

• Discomfort when exposed to cold or hot food or drink.
• Sensitivity to sweet foods
• Dull awareness
• Spontaneous pain
• Can be hard to point out which tooth is effected, hard to know if it is the top or bottom teeth

Stay tunes for our next blog, when we will be discussing how we diagnose and treat cracked teeth.