Examination and crack check
We look at the chip under magnification, shine light through the tooth to reveal any crack, test for sensitivity and check how the edge meets the opposing teeth.
About this treatmentDental condition · Wimpole Street, Marylebone
Chipped tooth: small damage, and the tidy ways to put it right
Losing a corner from a tooth is common, usually undramatic and often noticed first by the tongue, which cannot leave the new edge alone. Many chips are confined to enamel and are a cosmetic matter, but some run into dentine, leaving the tooth sensitive, and a few hide a deeper crack that only shows up under a bright light or on biting. A short examination sorts one from the other. At Wimpole Street most chips on front teeth are finished in a single visit with polishing or composite bonding, matched so closely to the neighbouring enamel that you would struggle to point to the repair afterwards.
Recognising it
How it usually feels
A tiny missing corner or a step in the biting edge
Front teeth chip most often at the incisal corner where enamel is thinnest.
The tongue keeps returning to a rough spot
Fractured enamel is sharp; the tongue and lip can be grazed within a day.
A twinge with cold drinks or when breathing in
Suggests dentine is exposed rather than just enamel.
A faint dark or white line near the chip
May indicate a crack running further into the tooth that needs checking.
A change in how a front tooth looks when you smile
Asymmetry between the two central incisors is noticed quickly.
Nothing beyond the visible change
Many enamel-only chips cause no symptoms at all.
Behind the symptoms
What's going on
- 01
Everyday knocks
A glass rim, a fork, a toddler’s head, a fall on the pavement: front teeth are the most exposed part of the face and take small impacts regularly. Most result in nothing; some take off a corner.
- 02
Unexpectedly hard food
A fruit stone, a hidden piece of bone, crackling, hard nuts or ice cubes all deliver a sharp point load. Teeth with a small existing crack or a filled edge are the ones most likely to give.
- 03
Thin enamel from acid wear
Frequent acidic drinks, reflux or vomiting soften and thin enamel over time. The biting edges of upper front teeth become translucent and fragile, and begin to chip under normal use.
- 04
Grinding and clenching
Nightly grinding wears edges flat and creates micro-fractures along them. Small flakes of enamel then break away, giving the characteristic ragged, uneven front-tooth edge seen in long-term grinders.
- 05
Using teeth as tools
Opening packets, holding pins, biting nails or chewing pen lids all concentrate force on the very edge of incisors. Habits like these are behind many repeat chips.
- 06
Old bonding or fillings at the edge
Composite is strong but not as hard as enamel, and a previous repair on a biting edge may chip before the surrounding tooth does. Re-polishing or replacing the bonding is usually straightforward.
Before your appointment
What you can do today
- Cover a sharp edge with a little orthodontic wax or sugar-free chewing gum if it is catching your tongue or lip.
- Avoid biting into hard or crusty food with the chipped tooth until it has been smoothed or repaired.
- If the tooth is sensitive to cold, use a sensitivity toothpaste and rub a little onto the exposed area before bed.
- Keep the fragment in milk or a clean container if you have it; small pieces are rarely reattached but it helps us judge the size of the loss.
- Do not file the edge yourself; a nail file removes healthy enamel and can make the repair harder to blend.
These are holding measures, not a substitute for an examination. Use any pain relief exactly as directed on the pack and check with a pharmacist if you take other medicines.
In the chair
How we treat it at Wimpole Street
Smoothing and contouring
For tiny enamel chips, the edge is polished and reshaped in a few minutes so it feels smooth and matches its neighbour, with no filling material needed.
About this treatmentComposite bonding
The missing corner is rebuilt in layered tooth-coloured resin, sculpted and polished in a single visit. Colour is matched to the surrounding enamel before we start.
About this treatmentPorcelain veneer
For larger chips on a front tooth, or when several front teeth have worn and chipped edges, a veneer restores shape and colour with excellent stain resistance.
About this treatmentNight guard
If grinding is behind repeated chipping, a custom guard protects both the natural edges and any bonding while you sleep.
About this treatmentFees
Costs to expect
An examination at Wimpole Street is expected to be £95, and very small chips can often be smoothed during that same visit for a modest additional fee. Composite bonding to rebuild a corner is indicative from £395 per tooth, completed in one appointment.
Where a veneer is the better long-term choice, composite veneers start from £595 and porcelain from £1,095 per tooth. A night guard to protect against grinding is around £395. Fees are confirmed in writing after the examination, and there is no charge for discussing the options.
Figures are indicative prices for Wimpole Street and are confirmed in a written plan once a dentist has examined you. Fees match our South Kensington and St Paul's clinics.
Don't wait if
When to see a dentist
- The chipped edge is cutting or ulcerating your tongue, lip or cheek.
- The tooth has become sensitive to cold, sweet or air.
- You can see a line or shadow extending from the chip into the tooth.
- The chip happened after a blow to the face, even if the tooth feels fine.
- The same tooth or a previous repair has chipped more than once.
- You are unhappy with how the tooth looks when you smile or speak.
FAQ
Common questions
If it is confined to enamel, painless and not sharp, it can simply be smoothed or left. We still recommend a look, because a chip can be the visible tip of a crack and because exposed dentine, even a little, tends to become sensitive and stained over time.
Usually between thirty minutes and an hour for one tooth, including shade matching, building the resin in layers, shaping and polishing. Anaesthetic is rarely needed for an enamel-only chip.
Composite resists staining well when polished properly, but it is more porous than enamel and can pick up colour from coffee, tea, red wine and smoking over several years. A quick re-polish at a hygiene visit brings it back; eventually it may be refreshed or replaced.
Repeated chipping points to a pattern: grinding at night, an edge-to-edge bite, acid-thinned enamel, or a habit such as nail biting. Repairing the chip without addressing the cause tends to lead to another chip, so we look for the pattern before we repair.
Bonding suits a single chip on an otherwise healthy tooth: it is quick, reversible and less expensive. A veneer makes sense when the chip is large, the tooth is also discoloured, or several front teeth need reshaping together. We will show you both options on your own photographs.
Marylebone, W1
Wimpole Street opens 1 October 2026
Leave your details and we will be in touch when the Marylebone diary opens. If the problem cannot wait, the same clinicians are already seeing patients in South Kensington and at St Paul's.
Related conditions
Opening 1 October 2026
Wimpole Street is not yet seeing patients. Until then, please book or call our South Kensington clinic on 020 7183 2362 or our St Paul's clinic on 020 7183 3709. Questions about the new clinic: wimpolestreet@md.co.uk.
Until we open
Need an appointment before 1 October 2026?
The same clinical team already works from two other Medical & Dental clinics. Book at either one now and, if you prefer, move your ongoing care to Wimpole Street once the doors open.
South Kensington
- 20 Old Brompton Road, London SW7 3DL
- Open seven days a week
- 020 7183 2362
St Paul's, City of London
- 5 Ave Maria Lane, London EC4M 7AQ
- Open Monday to Friday
- 020 7183 3709
