Losing our natural teeth leads to trouble with function and bite balance, causing not only difficulties eating and speaking, but leading to painful complications. In today’s blog, your Livonia, MI, dentist looks at the causes of tooth loss, steps you can take to reduce this risk, and the implant options we use to restore your smile’s health, function, and beauty.
Gum Disease and More
We could lose one or more of natural teeth to untreated cavities and dental infection, which could cause teeth to fall out or require removal to prevent the spread of infection. Severe damage through injuries, or teeth become knocked out could also cause unsightly gaps in your smile. However, the most common factor behind adult tooth loss is periodontitis, the advanced stage of gum disease. At this stage the gums not only bleed and feel sore, but the tissues connecting your teeth and gums could be destroyed, causing teeth to fall out. Once you have a gap in your smile, this could mean far more than just impacts on your smile beauty.
The Loss of Jawbone Density
When we lose our teeth, the body will notice the missing roots and no longer send doses of calcium and phosphorus the bone tissue around the lost tooth. Without these nutrients, the bone tissue begins to lose mass and density, which could cause it to break down. The breakdown of your jawbone tissue changes the ridge shape and leads to further tooth loss, along with an aged appearance. Losing your jawbone tissue also impacts your smiles ability to receive dental implants to fill the gaps in your smile.
Rebuilding Your Smile
We could help rebuild your smile and prepare it for the placement of one or more dental implants with jawbone grafting, also known as ridge augmentation, or sinus lifts, which help buildup structure in the smile to support a new tooth root. We then place dental implants, which stimulate and preserve the jawbone issue to allow your new smile to last for decades to come, and to prevent further tooth loss if you have remaining natural teeth.
Mini and All-On-4
We also have other options for those who have lost jawbone tissue that doesn’t require ridge augmentation or sinus lifts to proceed. With All-On-4 we support a full denture on only four implant posts per arch. With minis, we use small implant posts that require less jawbone structure to secure a prosthetic.
DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT TOOTH LOSS?
Our team wants to help you avoid missing teeth, and find durable lifelike solutions for the gaps that have already formed in your smile. To learn more about replacing your missing teeth, then call James Stewart, DDS, dental implant office in Livonia, MI, at (734) 425-4400. We also serve the residents of Farmington, Plymouth, Dearborn Heights, and all surrounding communities.