Dental reconstruction in Barcelona

When the tooth can be saved

Rebuilding a tooth means giving back the shape and the strength it has lost, without taking it out. It is done when enough healthy structure remains to hold on to, and that question decides everything else.

When it comes up

A tooth broken in a knock. A molar with a large cavity that has left little wall. Teeth worn down by clenching, which shorten over years without pain until the person notices their bite has changed. And a tooth that has had root canal treatment, which is left more brittle and needs protecting so it does not split.

What is used in each case

Composite, in the same appointment. The tooth is rebuilt in layers and you leave with it finished. It is what suits cases where little is missing, and it is reversible: if more has to be done later, nothing has been removed.
An inlay. A piece made in the laboratory that fits the cavity. It sits between a filling and a crown: for when composite would fall short but covering the whole tooth would be going too far.
A crown. It covers the whole tooth. That is what is called for when what remains would not stand up to biting on its own, and it is the norm after root canal treatment on a molar.
Post and crown. For when so little natural crown is left that an anchor inside the root is needed to have something to build on.

When it is no longer worth it

And this is the part a page like this almost never says. If the fracture runs below the gum, if there is not enough wall left even for a post, or if the root itself is split, rebuilding is spending money on something that will fail within months. At that point the honest option is extraction and an implant, and that is what we say in the chair.

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What is assessed before deciding

The decision is structural rather than cosmetic, and it comes out of three things.

How much tooth is left. Not the total amount, but how many healthy walls there are and how tall they stand. A tooth with three walls is rebuilt with composite; with one, we are talking about a crown.

Which tooth it is. A molar takes far more force when chewing than an incisor, so the same damage in two different places calls for different solutions. A rebuild that holds perfectly at the front splits at the back.

How you bite. If you clench or grind at night, any rebuild has a shorter life, and that changes the material chosen and puts a night guard in the plan. It is not an extra: it is what protects what has just been done.

What each test contributes

An X-ray says whether the decay reaches the nerve and how the root looks underneath, which is exactly what cannot be seen by looking. A scan of the mouth allows the inlay or crown to be made without the tray of paste, and it stores how your bite looked so it can be compared later. And in cases of general wear, the whole bite is studied before a single tooth is touched, because rebuilding one on its own to its original height can leave it clashing with the teeth opposite.

What to expect afterwards

Sensitivity to cold for a few days is normal, especially if the decay was deep. What is not normal is the tooth bothering you when you bite after a week: that usually means the contact is high, and it is corrected in a five-minute visit, so tell us rather than getting used to it.

And a rebuild is not forever. Composite gets polished and touched up, crowns last years but get checked, and what really makes the difference is hygiene at the border between tooth and material, which is where decay comes back.

The four ways to rebuild a tooth

Composite in the same appointment. Placed in layers over what is left of the tooth and shaped and polished on the spot. One visit, contained cost and reversible. It is what most cases get.
A laboratory inlay. A ceramic or composite piece made to fit the cavity and then cemented in. It fits better than a large filling and lasts longer, which is why it is preferred when the cavity is wide. It takes two visits.
Post and crown. For teeth with root canal treatment and little natural crown left. The post anchors into the root and forms the base for the crown that will cover the tooth. It is what gives function back to a badly destroyed molar.
Veneers, only if the damage is superficial. Fine cracks or deep staining on a front tooth, with no loss of structure. That is cosmetic treatment rather than reconstruction: if tooth is missing, a veneer does not replace it.

How the appointment goes, step by step

Looking and X-raying. How much tooth is left, whether the decay has reached the nerve and how the root looks. This is where it is decided whether to rebuild, whether root canal treatment is needed first, or whether the tooth cannot be saved.
Explaining it, with the price. The options that fit your case, how long each lasts and what each asks in return, before starting.
Cleaning and preparing. All the decay is removed and the surface made ready. This step decides whether the rebuild holds: nothing bonds to decayed tissue.
Rebuilding. In layers with composite in the same appointment, or taking the impression or scan if the piece is made in the laboratory.
Adjusting the bite. Marking paper shows where it touches when you close, and it is reduced until the load spreads evenly. This is the step you notice most if it is done badly, because a high spot bothers you from day one.
Polishing. A smooth surface collects less plaque and stains less, so polishing is not cosmetic finishing, it is what makes it last.
Checking it. At the next check-up the border between tooth and material is examined, which is where decay returns if something did not seal.

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