Can I swallow a dental post and if so, does is cause great damage internally?

Question

I lost a crown several months ago and have yet to go to an oral surgeon to have him/her simply remove the what's left of that area so that I can get an implant! What's left of that area are the remnants of the original tooth (very scary and discolored) and the post that once held the crown in place (it sticks out a few mm). The post now moves a bit and I'm worried it will come out all the way and I will swallow it - therefore doing great harm! Will the post come out or are they put in well?

Natwarlal Tibrewal, BDS · Answer

If you feel the post is loose, get at least this removed ASAP. You can swallow a post if its moving and comes out of the broken tooth. It can be serious but only rarely.

Norman Huefner, DDS · Answer

When the dentist removes the tooth he/she will also remove the post that was inside the tooth to be extracted.It is very rare that you would swallow the tooth, however not impossible.  The danger of you accidentally swallowing anything is that it could be aspirated into the lungs and cause an infection, and of course the object (whatever it is) would need to be removed from the lung.  This could happen to a loose tooth, a filling, a crown, a post, and a million other things that are not food swallowed intentionally that are not food.I suggest you get to the dentist who is going to do your implant and have him remove the hopeless tooth and post as soon as possible to reduce the risk of aspiration.

Murray Bruckel, DDS (retired) · Answer

The fact that the post is movable means that it can loosen more and possibly be swallowed.  Get the tooth (and post) removed ASAP.

Can I swallow a dental post and if so, does is cause great damage internally?

Answers (3)