How long can you leave a broken filling for?

[Cleocattra]

Hi everyone. I am in a bit of a dental dilemma here and after discovering this site today, I thought I’d register and seek out some advice.

Yesterday a large part of a filling fell out when I was eating. Now I’ve been planning on registering with a dental surgery for ages but I have been scared at even the thought of going to the dentist. I haven’t even been able to take my son as my phobia has been so bad. Now I know I have to bite the bullet and go see a dentist, I’m terrified.

I did some research into dentists in my area that take free nhs patients as I can’t afford to pay for the work. Turns out not many have many good reviews around here (except for private ones of course).
I did however find one. It’s a mix of private and nhs, so many of the reviews were mentioning specifically about them being good with nervous patients. Every other place around here had hardly any reviews about that.
I decided to check them out on their website and it looked more tailored to welcoming nervous patient. It even had more options than the other places for pain free treatments that help make you less worried.

I plucked up the courage to phone them and ask about being registered. The receptionist told me they’re not taking on nhs patients just yet but to phone up next month.

Do you think it would be fine to leave the broken filling for now or do I need to go to a dentist ASAP?
I don’t have a tooth ache but it is pretty sharp where it broken and my tongue keeps scraping across it whenever I talk or eat/drink. Not very painful but definitely uncomfortable.

If I can’t wait it out then how do you look out for dentist surgeries that you know are going to be the best for someone with a dental phobia like me? I don’t have the confidence from first impression with the others like this one. I wanna make sure I go somewhere that I will have more confidence in as I want to also pluck up the courage to be able to do regular checkups again. I don’t think I can handle another bad experience as that’s what put me off getting something done about this sooner.

 

[Animalhouse]

I think it will be okay. I have a large filling in one of my back molars and a few years ago, the tooth chipped around the filling. I just plucked up the courage to go to the dentist last month and even though I can't just get a new filling, it is repairable with a build up + crown. I would just make sure you keep the area clean and be careful when you're eating to avoid damaging your tooth around where the filling was.

 

[Enarete]

This might depend on the particular condition of the tooth and the filling and where it is / how big etc., but as Animalhouse suggests if you take care of the tooth for the next weeks, chances are that you will be fine till that. It might be a good idea to take a picture of the tooth and post your question in the ‚Ask a Dentist‘ section for nervous patients to get an estimation.

 

[Davee]

I once had to travel after breaking 2 fillings. I went to the drug store and picked up a "dental filling" compound. I had to use it daily but it kept the pulp of the tooth and nerve protected from bacteria and saliva. My dentist told me it was a good thing I did this as it prevented infection and he was able to fill the teeth easily.

 

[Thephilsblogbar]

The longest I have left a filling which ahve chipped was 6 months as I was unware because it was so tiny,

I did break a filling of a tooth back in 2005 or 2006 on a piece of fish from the chip shop, I had no choice but to go into the dentist the next day to be seen I could not leave a broken filling showing.