How much of the tooth breaks before i need an oral surgeon? i got a tooth that has broken and half of it has reached the gum line and one that is broken all the way to the gum line. is there a free program that can help me cause i have no money, still try

This : This is another one of those thorny questions that is all tied up with emotions and philanthropy. You have a critical need for dental care, and yet are unable to afford the cost of treatment. Now you add to that the detail of a badly broken tooth. First of all i would like to set the stage by pointing out that dentistry does not come without a cost, it is a regulated medical art that is not available for free. High quality dentistry can be quite expensive. Temporary assistance for needy families (tanf) provides temporary cash and medical help for families in need. Some families participate in the workfirst program. The workfirst program helps participants find and keep jobs. The department of social and health services (dshs), georgia state, may be able to help also, but you have to contact them and state your case. Now to answer your question. Broken teeth can usually be restored (saved) even when they are broken down to the gum line. So long as they are not vertically cracked, and as long as the have good bone support without periodontal pockets, and as long as the decay does not extend within the tooth below the bone height, then it is possible to repair and rebuild a tooth. Even when the decay is below the bone line it is still possible, if the root is long enough, to erupt a tooth orthodontically so that it can again be functional. To save a tooth under these circumstances requires root canal therapy, tooth strengthening with a post and then a crown can be placed on top of the post. This is involved but it is standard treatment and performed every day. If your tooth to badly damage and cannot be saved with root therapy, them it is time for the oral surgeon to do his work. He can remove the tooth and set you up for the next stage in your dental treatment. These days we commonly replace missing teeth with implants. A crown is placed on the implant after the titanium root has “bonded” to the patient’s bone. With this treatment in mind an oral surgeon will want to ensure that the place from which the tooth is removed will be ready to receive an implant. This might involved preparing the extraction site with a bone graft so that the bone ridge is preserved and has adequate height and width to accommodate an implant. You can see more about that on my website: http://www.Drneilmcleod.Com/procedures_dentalimplants_1722479.Aspx alternatively, and less costly is the option of replacing a missing tooth with a removable partial denture. If there are sound teeth on either side of the space where a tooth is missing it may also be possible to close the space with a dental bridge. I hope this helps. Dr. Neil mcleod dentistry that lasts - quality that counts.