Loose crowns & bridges | What to do if one falls out. (2024)

First aid for loose dental crowns and bridges.

This page outlines how to temporarily recement dental crowns (caps) that have come loose and subsequently come off their tooth. (The “glue” holding the restoration in place has simply let go.)

These same directions can also be applied to permanent bridges that have come off, as well as temporary crowns or bridges worn while your permanent dental work is being completed.

Instructions for temporarily recementing a crown or bridge that has fallen out.

The game plan.

This technique uses denture adhesive (like Fixodent) as “glue” for recementing crowns or bridges that have come off. This is a temporary measure only. It’s just intended to get you by for those few days until you can arrange to receive attention from your dentist. (We discuss what to do about longer time periods here.)

Goals and objectives of temporary recementation.

• Denture adhesive itself isn’t really expected to be strong enough to tightly bind loose restorations to their teeth. (Especially heavy all-metal crowns or long-span bridges.)

  But the idea is that it should add enough stability (possibly surprisingly so) that it’s possible for you to continue wearing your lost restoration (something that’s very important to do) for much of your day.

• As an advantage of this technique, if you error in performing it you have done nothing that’s irreversible or will place you in a worse-off position.
• And unlike some other types of “glues” that you might use, denture adhesive won’t interfere with the recementation process your dentist will perform later.

! Precautions about wearing loose/weakly cemented dental work.

There are a number of concerns and precautions that a person wearing any type of lost dental work needs to be aware of and heed.

• You must stay vigilant of the fact that even with this temporary fix your restoration is still loose from its tooth and absolutely can be dislodged.
• And in all cases, as soon as arrangements can be made your crown or bridge needs to be permanently recemented by a dentist.

How to temporarily recement a crown (or bridge) that has fallen out.

1) The steps –

1. Remove any loose debris from around your tooth or inside your crown.
2. Seat the crown over your tooth as a test.
3. With zero pressure, close your teeth together to confirm that it’s seated properly.
4. Remove the crown and partially fill it with denture adhesive (Fixodent, Poligrip, Corega, Effergrip, etc…). The adhesive acts as temporary “glue.”
5. Squish your crown back into place.
6. With zero pressure, close your teeth together to confirm that it’s seated properly.
7. Wipe away the excess adhesive.

2) Details, specifics, tips, and pointers –

The remainder of this page explains the process outlined above in greater detail.

a) Remove any loose debris from around your tooth or the inside of your crown.

As a first step, check your tooth and the inside of your crown for loose debris (food, fragments of dental cement, anything else). These kinds of objects should be easy enough to brush or rinse away. Stubborn items inside your crown can be dislodged with a toothpick.

Any foreign or loose items must be removed because they will prevent the crown from6 seating properly on your tooth (see illustration).

b) Seat the lost crown over your tooth as a test.

Figure out the orientation of your crown and then gently slip it over its tooth. Then, with absolutely no pressure, close your teeth together so to make sure that it’s seated properly.

• It should not interfere with your bite in any way.
• Your bite should feel exactly like it did before the crown came off, and pretty much the way it does when the crown is not in place.

If it doesn’t feel right, it’s most likely that either:

• You don’t have the crown oriented on your tooth correctly, so switch it around.
• There’s still a piece of debris in the way. Check your tooth and inside the crown again.

c) “Glue” the loose crown in place with denture adhesive.

After you’ve found your testing to be successful, it’s time to go ahead and fill the crown with denture adhesive and then “cement” it back into place.

What kind of denture adhesive should you use?

Without question, paste/cream denture adhesive is the easiest kind to use. That’s because it’s already mixed and ready to go.

When it comes to products, you’ll probably find several brands to choose from. Fixodent, Poligrip, Corega, and Effergrip all make paste/cream denture adhesive. Tubes of generic products will probably be an option too. Choosing any of them should work just fine.

If instead, all you have is denture adhesive powder, that will work too. Just sprinkle some in your restoration and then moisten it. The only drawback of using powder adhesive is one of convenience.

Applying the “glue.”

Fill your crown with adhesive but you don’t have to fill it completely. However, you should use enough that some excess squishes out as your crown is seated.

Once filled, place your crown back on your tooth. (Do it slowly enough that the excess has no trouble squishing out.) Then wipe away the excess with your finger or toothbrush.

Then, just like before and while still using zero pressure, gently check your bite to confirm that your crown is properly seated. (If it isn’t, take it back off, clean it out, and start from the beginning of these instructions again.)

How long will the denture adhesive hold your crown on your tooth?

Well, the goal is really just for several hours. Remember, the plan shared here is just a temporary cementation, mainly just for appearance’s sake and to help keep your tooth from shifting. It’s only a first-aid remedy to help limp you along until your dentist can provide a permanent fix.

Our Concerns and Precautions section below explains more fully how much restoration wear is needed or is prudent. But generally, this technique should just be used for wearing the crown on a part-time basis. One should never expect that the adhesive will perform predictably enough to hold their crown on for events like eating or even sleeping.

d) Be in contact with your dentist.

You absolutely must make contact with your dentist’s office.

You need to let them know that your crown has fallen out and that you need an appointment to have it permanently recemented.

Other kinds of temporary “cement” you can use to recement crowns that have fallen out.

Our instructions on this page outline the use of denture adhesive (like that that comes in a tube) to recement lost dental work. Overall, this makes a convenient product to use, typically has quite a bit of tackiness to it and generally tends to work well.

There are other compounds you can use too, some of which you may already have around the house.

• Denture adhesive in powder form is one.
• Vaseline or toothpaste can also serve as (less effective) substitutes.
• Some crowns or bridges may stay in place surprisingly well without the use of any type of temporary cement at all.

Over-the-counter cement for restorations that have come off.

We like the idea of using denture adhesive as glue for lost crowns and bridges. (It’s usually strong enough to add substantial stability to a person’s situation. Yet weak enough that using it is always easily reversible.)

There are however, other, usually stronger, types of OTC cement available. You’ll need to use your own judgment about using one.

Points to consider before using an OTC dental cement.

• While the strength of these types of cements is no doubt greater than denture adhesive, they are typically hard-set products. That means if you don’t get things right the first time, or if you have to repeat the procedure later on, getting yourself back to initial conditions (a cement-free tooth and crown) is more of a challenge.

  There’s also the issue of excess cement that expresses out of the crown during the cementation process and hardens. The presence of these globs will inhibit thorough plaque removal from around the tooth.

• We understand the inconvenience of using a weak adhesive but do you really want to use a (moderately) stronger one?

  Using denture adhesive means you can take your crown out at times when there’s a risk that it will fall out. In comparison, do you really want to go to sleep wearing a restoration that’s held in place with temporary cement that may or may not hold overnight?

  Along these same lines, your crown is worth many many hundreds of dollars. If the temporary cement you’ve used turns out to be stronger than expected, you’ll run a risk of it being damaged or broken when your dentist tries to get it off. (This would be more of a problem with some types of all-ceramic crowns.)

• Many OTC products are ZOE (zinc oxide and eugenol) cement (check their ingredients list to find out). The eugenol component may interfere with the set of the type of permanent cement that your dentist uses. (Christensen)

  Choosing a non-eugenol product probably makes the best choice. Also, take whatever product you have purchased when you go to your dentist’s office so they can see what you’ve used.

• Never consider using super glue. This makes the absolute worst choice possible, period.

▲ Section references – Christensen

Wearing loose/weakly cemented crowns – Concerns and cautions.

What you need to do.

The following rules apply to any type of loose or weakly cemented dental restoration (crowns or bridges, temporary or permanent).

a) Only fully seated restorations should be worn.

If your bite feels different or wrong when your crown that has come off is placed back over its tooth, it’s not seated properly and should not be worn if that status can not be resolved.

That’s because wearing a restoration that’s “too high” can result in damage to its tooth or opposing teeth. In some cases, this damage can be significant. As worst-case scenarios, one of your teeth might fracture, or have its nerve traumatized to the point where root canal treatment is required.

b) You should wear your crown as much as you safely can.

You should try to wear your restoration that has come off as much as is reasonably possible. That’s because the more it is in place the less likely that your teeth (the crowned tooth or any of its neighboring or opposing teeth) will shift in position.

If a significant amount of tooth shifting takes place, your dentist may not be able to recement your restoration and instead will have to make you a new one.

There are times when your loose crown should be removed.

With just denture adhesive used as cement, your temporarily recemented dental work should be taken out during activities where its dislodgment is a possibility. Two examples are:

• For fear of swallowing the item if it does fall off, it makes sense to remove it while sleeping.
• The same precaution should also be taken when eating. (Of course, you’ll need to keep your eating and drinking activities away from your uncovered tooth so you don’t damage or irritate it).

c) Keep your tooth and restoration clean.

Cleaning your crown.

Any time your crown is taken out, you should clean the adhesive off of it. Using your toothbrush, a Q-tip® or a bent pipe cleaner inside should work well enough.

A potential problem is the case where residual adhesive remaining inside your restoration dries out and hardens. If it does, you may not be able to seat your crown back on your tooth properly.

Keeping your crown or bridge wet at all times can help to avoid this complication. So if it’s not in your mouth, after cleaning your restoration place it in a capped bottle with some water, or else wrapped up in a wet paper towel and placed in a baggie.

Cleaning your tooth.

Any tooth surface is always at risk for decay if debris is allowed to accumulate on it. And in fact, the surface of a tooth that’s been trimmed for a crown (exposed dentin) is less decay-resistant than when it was covered over by its original enamel covering.

For this reason, you’ll need to remove your crown and brush your tooth multiple times per day, just like you do with your other teeth. Also, be sure to floss it and the sides of its neighboring teeth too, just like you routinely should with your other teeth.

Allowing plaque and debris to accumulate around your tooth and/or underneath its crown, especially when a longer-term scenario (more than just a few days) is involved, can set the stage for complications with tooth decay, gum irritation, and/or gum recession. Adequate oral home care must be diligently maintained.

d) Keep in mind that the weight of a dental bridge may make it hard to keep in place.

Dental bridges involve multiple teeth and therefore, as compared to crowns, usually weigh more. This additional weight factor can make them more difficult to keep in place.

You’ll simply need to keep this in mind and take precautions accordingly. The same issue can apply to very large individual metal crowns (like gold crowns).

Why should you go to the trouble of wearing a crown or bridge that has come off?

By wearing loose dental work as much as possible, you can:

• Return your appearance back to normal. (A great luxury in the case that the restoration that’s fallen out is off a front tooth).
• Reduce your tooth’s sensitivity to hot, cold or air stimuli, if you have noticed that problem.
• Help to minimize the potential for tooth shifting (either the crown’s stub tooth, or its neighboring or opposing teeth).

! Not wearing a restoration that has come off can be a giant mistake.

The last point in our list above is probably the most important one. When teeth aren’t in contact with other teeth (like when your crown or bridge is out), they tend to shift.

• The goal of wearing your loose restoration is to prevent tooth movement. If none occurs, recementing the item can be amazingly quick and simple.
• In the case where your teeth have only shifted just the tiniest amount, your dentist may be able to restore the fit of your restoration by trimming on it or the affected teeth. If so, it can then be successfully cemented back into place.
• If a significant amount of tooth movement has occurred, the fit of the restoration may be so altered that it can’t be fixed and therefore can’t be recemented.

  If so, what would have been a relatively minor expense to you will now involve crown or bridge replacement costs. That’s quite a difference.

  See Also

  Best practices for temporary cements

  If you’ve lost your restoration entirely, these pages can give you an idea of what to expect in replacement costs: Fees for crowns. Fees for bridges.

How often do you need to wear your lost restoration to keep your teeth from shifting?

This isn’t really that easy of a question to answer because people and situations vary.

• You may be able to get buy with wearing your crown just a few hours a day.
• In other cases, you may need to wear it for as much of your waking day as possible.

The test is easy enough.

• If your crown slips back into place and everything feels right and normal, then what you’re doing is working out.
• But if you slip it in and it seems wedged or your bite seems off, your teeth have started to shift.

If only the tiniest amount of tooth shifting has occurred, wearing your restoration may be able to guide them back into place (just like orthodontic treatment moves teeth). If that works you’re lucky. And take the hint that you need to be wearing your crown or bridge more often than before.

Who should you have permanently recement your crown?

Any dentist should be more than capable of recementing your crown. But listed below are some issues that you might consider when choosing exactly who will.

a) The dentist who originally placed your crown –

They may not charge you.

No dentist likes to see people have problems with the work they provided. And depending on the circ*mstances, they might even be a little embarrassed that you did.

Bottom line, for quick, uncomplicated recementations (like the case where you’ve followed the instructions above), they might not even charge you.

You’ll probably get appointed quicker.

Once again, it’s their work. One would expect that they would take some interest in servicing it.

b) Another dentist –

If they can appoint you sooner …

Considering all of the issues discussed above, in situations like when you’re away from home and will be for a while, having a different dentist just go ahead and take care of matters, before complications have a chance to crop up, makes a lot of sense.

It gives you a chance for a second opinion.

If your crown is brand new and has just come off, or if it’s been off repeatedly, a different dentist may be more forthcoming in explaining/critiquing why your restoration is proving problematic.

While hindsight is always 20/20, their observations may help to guide your decisions about future dental work. As example issues:

• The shape your tooth was given when your crown was originally placed affects both the success of its original cementation process as well as recementation attempts. (Ayad)
• Crown or tooth modifications made by a dentist at the time of previous recementation attempts may aid in their success. (Amarnath)

▲ Section references – Ayad, Amarnath

How much does it cost to permanently recement a loose dental crown?

Here’s an estimate of the fee a dentist might charge to recement a dental crown or bridge that has fallen out.

• Recementation of a dental crown (“permanent” cement).

  $85.00 – $141.00

• Recementation of a dental bridge (“permanent” cement).

  $93.00 – $178.00

  Low fee = Small rural city or town.
  High fee = Large metropolitan area.
  How did we come up with this estimate?

Note: As discussed above, some dentists may not charge for recementing a restoration if they were the dentist that placed it originally.

▲ Page reference sources – Diamond

Video transcription.

Hello. Welcome to Animated Teeth.com and our page that discusses what to do if you have a dental crown come off.

For starters, we’ll mention that while not the norm, losing a crown isn’t necessarily all that uncommon. And the good news is that in many many cases the lost crown can just be recemented back on, typically with the expectation that its long-term outlook will be fine.

That of course applies to situations where there are no complicating factors, such as the presence of tooth decay or concurrent tooth breakage. These are things your dentist can easily check for.

So, with your crown in hand, what can you do to help ensure that it can be recemented?

Well, a very important issue to understand is that teeth that aren’t locked in place by their contact with neighboring and opposing teeth will have a tendency to shift.

So, in the case where a tooth has lost its crown, clearly its exposed nub won’t be in contact with any other teeth at all. And, actually, any teeth that touched or bit against the missing crown will have the potential to shift too.

And here’s the rub, if any of these teeth shift significantly enough, your crown will no longer fit your tooth’s space correctly and your dentist will need to make you a new one.

So, what’s the solution? What do you need to do if you’ve had a crown come off?

Well, as an initial step, you need to contact your dentist’s office and advise them of your situation. They can then appoint you as promptly as possible so you can be evaluated and hopefully have your crown cemented back on.

But sometimes circ*mstances dictate that immediate assistance can’t be arranged. So, what steps can you take in the meantime so things don’t go awry?

The simple solution is to just wear your crown. When back on your tooth, the crown will make appropriate contact with all neighboring and opposing teeth, making it impossible for any of them to shift. So, how do you do that? And what precautions are involved?

If both the inside of a crown and the nub of a tooth it fits over are free of debris, a person will usually find that their lost restoration can be slipped back onto their tooth. And if 100% in place, when they close their teeth together, everything about their bite will feel 100% normal.

So, give that a try. Gently clean your tooth and crown, like with a toothbrush and rinsing. Then slip your crown on. If that feels OK and normal, then very very gently, just as the lightest test, close your teeth together.

As you do, if anything seems amiss at all, back off immediately and take the crown back off. But in most cases, the crown will have seated properly. And when you close your teeth together, 100% of things will feel normal and right.

If they don’t, you can check again for any debris that’s keeping your crown from fully seating on your tooth and then try again. But if the seated crown still doesn’t feel 100% normal, take it back out. And in this case, the set of instructions we outline in this video isn’t going to work for your situation.

Assuming that all went well, what comes next? What should you do?

Well, no one really knows how quickly your teeth may shift while your crown is off. And we’ll point out that from the standpoint of appearance and possibly comfort, for example some tooth nubs are sensitive to air, or hot and cold, you may want to wear your crown more often as opposed to less. So, what makes a good plan?

In most situations, wearing your crown at least several hours per day is usually enough to ensure that no significant tooth shifting will take place.

So, a plan could be to wear your loose crown during several of your waking hours. Like times when you don’t have to talk, aren’t eating or drinking, and can just keep your teeth together to ensure that your crown stays in place. And by the way, you would keep up this routine each day until you finally get in to see your dentist.

For times when you can’t meet those conditions, the risk of your crown coming off unexpectedly and causing consequences, like getting bitten on or swallowed, rises. So, you’ll need to experiment a little, weigh your risks, and take your crown out when higher levels of risk prevail.

As an aid in wearing your crown more securely, our page explains how denture adhesive or vaseline can be used as temporary “cement” that can make it harder for your crown to be dislodged.

It would never be expected that these aids would anchor your crown well enough for eating, drinking, or sleeping. And even talking or just wearing your crown for appearance’s sake might be iffy. Only you can decide how secure things seem to be and if that level of risk is worth the reward.

You can purchase stronger kinds of temporary cement off-the-shelf in the dental section of your local pharmacy. However, we wouldn’t recommend the use of this kind of product without consulting with your dentist first.

Some of them aren’t compatible with the kind of permanent cement your dentist will use. Also, these cements usually set hard, meaning you either get things exactly right the first time, especially in regard to your bite, or else you’ve failed, possibly leading to complications.

Even if you do get your crown in place successfully, you won’t have the ability to trim away any hardened excess cement. That will keep you from cleaning around your tooth properly and can lead to gum irritation. Once again, we’ll simply say that if you’re thinking about using one of these products, get your dentist’s blessing first.

As another mention, expect that super gluing your crown back on your tooth will end up being a world’s-worst decision. Repeat, do not do this.

As far as how much you need to wear your crown each day, here’s a guideline. If seating your crown on your tooth always seems to be the same passive fit. You’re probably wearing it enough.

If instead sometimes you need to force it on a little or it feels wedged in place, well that’s a sign that your teeth have shifted some and you need to wear your crown more.

As far as what to do when eating and drinking, just take your crown out. And make sure to avoid chewing things in the area where the crown’s space is, so its tooth nub doesn’t get damaged.

So, with those instructions and precautions, we’ll wrap this video up. Our page contains additional important information so be sure to give it a read. And after you do, run your interpretation of our instructions past your dentist so they can give an OK to your plan.

Good luck, your efforts should pay off. Goodbye.