Whether due to a traumatic accident or from poor oral care, losing a tooth can be devastating. This event’s reality is that despite aesthetic reasons, losing teeth can greatly impact your oral health. Replacing missing teeth soon is the most assured way to protect your mouth from decay, misalignment, and further tooth loss. It’s essential to understand what happens after you lose a tooth and why you should make that dental appointment as soon as possible to preserve your oral health and save your teeth.
What Happens After Losing Teeth?
When one or more teeth become missing, whether dislodged at the socket or knocked out due to tremendous force, your jawbone suffers the most. Your jawbone will begin to lose stimulation from the tooth, and to compensate for the lost space, the adjacent teeth next to the socket will begin to shift and move into the missing tooth area. Because the jawbone lacks the stimulation from that tooth, it becomes more susceptible to infection, potentially leading to bone loss. The teeth surrounding the gap will accumulate more plaque and bacteria, even with consistent brushing and flossing, and can make you more vulnerable to gum disease.
The risk of infection, bone loss, and misalignment all contribute to one another and contribute to other health conditions, such as heart disease. Oral health has specific connections to heart health and the bloodstream due to the various blood vessels found throughout the gums and tooth roots. Having a crooked smile can also lead to bite problems, increasing the risks of TMJ disorder when older and long-term migraines are not treated.
How Teeth Can Be Replaced
Visiting your dentist will provide you with the best opportunity to either save your tooth or replace your tooth. Booking an appointment with your dentist can give you all your available options for tooth replacement and give back your healthy smile. If your dentist cannot save your tooth for any reason and you need a replacement tooth, these options may work best for you:
• Dental Implants
• Implant-Supported Bridges
• Implant-Supported Dentures
These options provide the most security and stability for replacing one or several teeth because implants can provide the jawbone with enough stimulation to keep the teeth alignment and inner bones healthy. For more information about these procedures, contact Magnolia Dental, operated by Dr. Ross Quartano, located in Covington, LA, for a dental appointment.
