Kevin Finnerty DDS
757-424-6644
Kfinnerty@verizon.com
Quick Reference
Should a Tooth Be Extracted Because of Decay?
Dentistry has come a long way, but there are still some situations where teeth have been so damaged by decay that they must be removed.
Here's an explanation of a situation where a tooth can be saved, followed by a scenario where it cannot.
A crown is often used to cover and protect a damaged tooth. It fits over the part of the tooth that's above the bone, but it can't go below the bone. So the more healthy tooth structure your dentist has to work with above the bone, the better.
This is an example of crowning a tooth in a normal situation. The tooth has been damaged, but there's still an adequate amount of healthy tooth structure for the dentist to work with.
In the second case, nearly half of the tooth has broken away. The dentist just barely has enough remaining tooth to place a crown.
It's impossible for a dentist to save a tooth if there isn't enough healthy tooth structure left above the bone. In such a situation, the tooth simply has to be removed.