5 Ways to Fix a Sharp Tooth and Why You Shouldn't File It

If a tooth suddenly feels sharp or jagged, it may be chipped, cracked or your filling may be broken. Cover it with dental wax and call your dentist.

Don’t file it down yourself because enamel, the hard outer layer of your teeth, doesn’t grow back. Your dentist can smooth out a small chip or use bonding in one short visit. Learn about the causes, five ways to fix it, and when it’s urgent.

Why Does My Tooth Feel Sharp?

A tooth may feel sharp if part of it or a filling breaks off, or it’s naturally pointed.

Chipped or Broken Teeth

A chipped tooth is the most common cause. It may happen from biting something hard like ice or a popcorn kernel, falling or an injury playing sports.

A Cracked Tooth or Broken Cusp

A cusp is a raised point on a back tooth. A fractured cusp tends to break off around a filling and rarely damages the pulp, the nerve tissue inside.

So your molar might suddenly feel sharp but not hurt much. If it’s painful because of a crack, see your dentist as soon as possible.

Lost Fillings and Damaged Crowns

If a filling falls out or breaks off, the rim of the hole can feel sharp and trap food. The same thing can happen if your crown (cap) cracks.

Grinding and Worn Enamel

Bruxism is the medical term for grinding or clenching your teeth when you’re awake or asleep. Over time, this can make your teeth worn, flat, chipped or cracked.

Teeth That Are Pointed by Nature

The shape of each tooth matches how it works in your mouth. Your canines are naturally pointed so they can tear food. If one of them keeps catching your lip, ask your dentist if it can be rounded off.

When children lose their baby teeth, their adult front teeth can come in with small bumps on the edge, called mamelons, that can feel jagged.

What to Do if You Have a Sharp Tooth

When a tooth breaks, take care of your mouth, save the broken part and call your dentist.

Right After a Chip or Break

If you fell, hit your mouth or bit something hard and broke a tooth:

1. Rinse your mouth with warm water.
2. If you’re bleeding, hold a piece of gauze over it for about 10 minutes or until it stops.
3. Put a cold compress on your cheek to help with swelling.
4. If you have the part that broke off, save it in a small container with water. Your dentist may be able to bond it back in place.⁶
5. Call your dentist and go in as soon as you can.

Relief for a Chipped or Sharp Tooth

Until you can see your dentist, you can:

• Put dental wax on the sharp edge to keep from cutting your tongue or cheek.
• Eat soft foods and chew on the other side of your mouth.
• If a filling fell out, put a piece of sugarless gum or over-the-counter dental cement over the hole.
• Take an over-the-counter pain reliever by mouth like ibuprofen or acetaminophen according to the package directions.
• If your tooth is sensitive, avoid very hot, cold or sugary foods and drinks.
• Don’t put aspirin or other pain pills against your tooth or gum to relieve pain. They can burn your gum.

None of these steps will fix your tooth.

Can You File Down a Sharp Tooth at Home?

No. Don’t file, sand or “shave” your teeth yourself with a nail file or emery board. Enamel doesn’t grow back.

Don’t try it just because you saw someone do it on video. If you file your own teeth, you run the risk of:

• Removing too much enamel, making your tooth permanently sensitive and more likely to crack and decay.
• Missing a hidden crack that may need treatment.
• Cutting your gum, lip or tongue.

Your dentist can smooth out the sharp edge or blunt the point by removing a small amount of enamel. It’s usually not necessary to numb your tooth first, and in most cases it takes about half an hour.²

5 Ways to Fix a Sharp Tooth

How your dentist treats a sharp tooth depends on how much of your tooth is broken and whether the break reaches your pulp.

1. Reshaping the Tooth

For a small chip in the enamel only, your dentist removes a little enamel to smooth the edge. This is called enameloplasty, or recontouring. The same painless polish rounds off pointed canines, and you probably won’t need numbing.

2. Dental Filling or Bonding

If the chip is bigger, or if a filling is broken, your dentist may use bonding. This means adding and shaping a tooth-colored filling (called resin) onto the tooth. Not much healthy tooth is removed when bonding, and it’s typically done in one visit.

3. Dental Crown

If the break is very large, or if your tooth is cracked, you may need a dental crown. A crown is a tooth-shaped cap that goes over the entire tooth.

This usually takes 2 visits, and you’ll have a temporary crown in between. Some offices can make crowns the same day, though this isn’t always the best option.

4. Dental Veneers

Veneers are sometimes used for chipped front teeth. They’re thin shells of porcelain or composite (resin) that go over the front of the tooth. If you get a porcelain veneer, your dentist will have to remove a small amount of enamel from the front and sides, so this can’t be undone.

Porcelain veneers are made at a lab, so it’ll take more than one visit. Composite veneers may require less enamel removal and fewer visits.

5. Root Canal Therapy

If the break exposed the pulp, the dentist will try to keep it alive by either covering it or by removing the injured part. This is usually the first step for both kids and adults.

If the pulp can’t be saved, or a fully grown adult tooth needs a post to hold a crown, the next step is usually a root canal. That means removing the pulp, cleaning and sealing the inside of the tooth, and then repairing it with a filling or crown.

How to Prevent a Chipped or Sharp Tooth

Most chipped teeth are caused by biting down hard on something, getting hit in the mouth, or grinding your teeth. Here’s how to prevent them:

• Wear a mouthguard when you play sports or take part in recreational activities. The American Dental Association recommends this.⁹
• If you grind your teeth, ask your dentist about a night guard to wear when you sleep.
• Don’t chew on ice, hard candies, popcorn kernels, pens, or your fingernails.
• Don’t open packages with your teeth. Use scissors instead.
• Get cavities and cracked or worn fillings fixed before they cause your tooth to chip or break.
• Get your checkups as often as your dentist recommends.

When to See a Dentist

See a dentist about any chipped or cracked tooth or lost filling, even if it doesn’t hurt, because hidden cracks and decay don’t show in a mirror. A small chip or sharp edge that doesn’t hurt can wait for a regular appointment, but the signs below can’t.

Call 911 or Go to the ER

Call 911 or go to the emergency room for:

• A head injury with passing out, confusion or repeated vomiting.
• Signs of a broken jaw, such as severe jaw pain or trouble opening or closing your mouth.
• Bleeding that won’t stop with firm pressure.
• Face swelling that spreads fast or toward your eye or down your neck, or comes with a fever when you can’t see a dentist right away.
• Trouble opening your mouth along with face swelling.
• A swollen or painful eye, vision changes or a lot of swelling inside your mouth.

Call 911 if you have any trouble breathing or swallowing.

See a Dentist Right Away

Get to a dentist right away for:

• A knocked-out adult tooth: hold it by the crown, not the root. Gently put it back in its socket if possible, or keep it in a small container of milk.
• A knocked-out baby tooth: don’t put it back in.
• Any tooth loosened or pushed out of place by an injury, or a newly loose adult tooth.
• Pain when you chew or let go of a bite, or with hot or cold, signs of a possible crack.
• A large broken piece, or pink or red showing inside the tooth.
• Severe or throbbing pain, gum or face swelling, a fever with tooth pain, a gum pimple or a bad taste, signs of a possible infection.

Swelling with a fever but no clear dental cause needs medical care the same day.

See a dentist or doctor about a mouth sore that lasts more than two weeks, even if you think a sharp tooth caused it.¹² Don’t wait for your next checkup.

Signs That Can Wait for a Regular Visit

Book a regular appointment for:

• A small chip or rough edge that doesn’t hurt.
• Sharp spots that keep catching your tongue, cheek or lip, once you’ve covered them with dental wax.
• Worn, flattened or chipped edges from grinding.