Home → Services → Broken Crown / Lost Filling don't panic, and don't toss that crown

Broken Crown or Lost Filling? Here's Your Plan

Rarely a middle-of-the-night emergency, but never a "deal with it next month" problem. Protect the tooth tonight, keep the pieces, and let us make the repair simple, and often cheaper than you'd think.

👑Keep the crownoften re-cementable for less🧾Clear price firstrepair vs. replace, in writing

First things first: how urgent is this?

Honest answer: a lost filling or a crown that popped off is usually not a same-hour emergency. The tooth underneath is exposed, not injured. But "not an emergency" is not the same as "can wait weeks", and this is where people get burned.

Under a crown or filling sits dentin, a layer far softer than enamel. Exposed dentin decays quickly, picks up sensitivity to hot and cold, and the neighboring teeth start drifting into the gap within days. Wait a month and the crown that would have snapped right back on may no longer fit, because the tooth and its neighbors have moved. A five-minute re-cement becomes a brand-new crown. Aim to be seen within a few days to a week, and call sooner if anything on the "actually urgent" list below shows up.

What to do tonight

Find and keep the crown. Rinse it, put it in a zip-top bag, and bring it with you. Intact crowns can very often be re-cemented — a fraction of the cost of making a new one.
Pick up temporary dental cement at the pharmacy. Brands like Dentemp are sold at any Salem drugstore for a few dollars. You can use it to cover the exposed tooth, or to temporarily seat a crown that fits back cleanly. It's a bridge to your visit, not a fix.
Never use superglue. It isn't safe in your mouth, it almost always seats the crown slightly wrong, and it can make the crown impossible to remove without destroying it.
Chew on the other side and skip very hot, very cold, sticky, and hard foods. The exposed tooth is fragile and will let you know it.
Keep the area clean. Brush gently and swish with warm salt water after eating so food doesn't sit in the gap.

When it IS urgent

Call us the same day. We hold same-day emergency slots every weekday — if you notice any of these:

Sharp or throbbing pain — the nerve may be exposed or the tooth may have fractured underneath, which changes the plan. Persistent throbbing is toothache territory.
Bleeding that doesn't stop with gentle pressure, or a jagged edge cutting your tongue or cheek.
A broken piece of tooth came off with the filling. That's a fracture, not just lost material.

One worry we can usually take off your plate: swallowed pieces are almost always harmless. A swallowed crown or filling fragment simply passes through. The only exception is if you inhaled it — sudden coughing or wheezing right afterward, which needs medical attention.

Repair vs. replace: what it costs

This is the money question, so here are straight numbers. If your crown is intact and the tooth underneath is sound, re-cementing typically runs under $150 at our office — quick, painless, done in one short visit. A replacement filling runs $150–320 without insurance. If the crown is cracked, doesn't fit anymore, or the tooth under it has decayed, a new crown runs $900–1,300. You can read more about how that works on our dental crowns page.

Dr. Vasquez or Dr. Tran will examine the tooth, take an X-ray if needed, and hand you a written price for each option before anything happens. Our fees are set roughly 20% below what most Salem offices charge, and we welcome OHP patients and most PPO plans — details on the insurance page. The pattern we see over and over: the person who comes in this week pays for a re-cement; the person who comes in this spring pays for a crown, and sometimes a root canal under it.

Why crowns and fillings come loose

Usually it's not something you did. Cement washes out slowly over years, decay creeps in at the edge of an old filling and undermines it, and nighttime grinding levers restorations loose — if your jaw is sore in the morning, mention it and we'll check. Sticky candy and ice-chewing get honorable mentions. Whatever the cause, we'll tell you plainly whether this was bad luck or a sign the tooth needs something more durable.

Broken crown & lost filling questions, answered

My crown came off but nothing hurts. Do I still need to come in? +

Yes — within a few days, not a few weeks. The tooth under a crown was already weakened, and without its cover it decays quickly and can shift position. Wait too long and the crown may no longer fit, turning a quick re-cement into a full replacement.

Can I glue my crown back on myself? +

Use temporary dental cement from a pharmacy — never superglue or household adhesive. Superglue is not safe in the mouth, seats the crown wrong, and can make it impossible to remove without damage. Temporary cement holds a day or two until we can re-cement it properly.

I swallowed my filling or a piece of my crown. Is that dangerous? +

Almost never — small dental pieces usually pass through without any trouble. The exception is if you inhaled it (sudden coughing or wheezing right after), which needs medical attention. Otherwise, just mention it at your visit; the tooth is the real concern, not the swallowed piece.

How much does it cost to fix a lost filling or crown in Salem? +

Re-cementing your existing crown is a fraction of the cost of a new one — typically under $150 at our office. A replacement filling runs $150–320 uninsured, and a new crown $900–1,300 if the old one can't be reused. You get every price in writing before we start, and our fees run about 20% below the typical Salem office.

How long can I wait with a lost filling? +

Aim for within a week. The exposed dentin is softer than enamel and decays fast, and the open space traps food against the tooth. A filling redone promptly is routine; the same tooth six months later often needs a crown or a root canal.