It may only be one tooth, but losing it can have resounding consequences for the rest of your oral health (not to mention the confidence in your smile). Those consequences increase with every tooth you lose, but can be mitigated with the right replacement option. Still, the best way to avoid the dangers that your smile could face is to prevent adult tooth loss as best you can. If you have already lost one or more teeth, than we advise scheduling an appointment with your dentist to design a restorative treatment plan as soon as possible.
The Truth About Losing Teeth
- There’s more than one way to lose a tooth, the most common of which being untreated gum disease. Other reasons can include extensive tooth decay, severe damage to a tooth and/or its root, or tooth extraction, such as wisdom tooth removal.
- Despite the fact that it is highly preventable, tooth loss affects over half of the adults in the United States by age 44. In cases of gum disease, the loss may be due to how severe the disease can become before symptoms are obvious.
- Besides the effects that a missing tooth can have on your smile’s appearance, it can also cause your remaining teeth to lose their balance and shift towards the open gap. If the tooth isn’t replaced, then the movement can throw your bite off-balance and increase your risks of further tooth loss.
- While you have several options for replacing your lost tooth or teeth, a dental implant is the only one that can replace the lost roots. Implants are inserted into the jawbone, and can stand alone or be used with other implants to stabilize a replacement dental crown, bridge, or denture.
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