Unless the empty place left by your missing molar is filled with a denture or implant, the surrounding teeth can shift and become misaligned. Misaligned teeth cause more than a cosmetic headache. They also increase your risk of tooth decay, gum disease, occlusion issues, and additional tooth loss.
Can you live with a missing tooth? It would be best to replace missing teeth as soon as possible to prevent tooth shifting. However, if you have a tooth extracted, it is advised to wait four to six months to have the tooth replaced.
After you undergo a tooth extraction, you will need to replace the missing tooth or teeth. If the teeth are not replaced, the bones in your mouth can weaken and lose density. Other teeth also might shift, and you might experience trouble eating.
Each tooth in your mouth provides support for the teeth around it. When one tooth is missing, the surrounding teeth have nothing to lean on and will tilt toward the open space. This leads to crooked teeth that are harder to clean properly and can result in tooth decay or further tooth loss.
In addition to the gap in your grin, your missing tooth may also lead to tooth misalignment and a more crooked smile. Misaligned teeth make it harder for you to maintain good oral hygiene, which increases your risk of developing cavities and, even worse, gum disease, which is the leading cause of tooth loss in adults.
Whatever the reason, we want you to know that it's never too late to get dental implants. Years after extraction, bone loss can occur in the jawbone. This bone loss can make it difficult to wear dentures as it will cause them to loosen.
If you have a broken tooth root left in your gums, make sure you visit a local oral surgeon to remove it. Unfortunately, many general dentists do not have the necessary skill set to remove these broken teeth. Leftover tooth root fragments can cause a lot of problems if not treated accordingly.
If your tooth is damaged, but enough of the tooth structure is healthy, your dentist can save your tooth. It will need treatment, but since your natural teeth are sturdier than options like a bridge or dentures, most dentists will opt to save your tooth over extracting it where possible.
OSHA considers extracted teeth to be potentially infectious material. Dental healthcare personnel that should dispose of extracted teeth in regulated medical waste containers unless returned to the patient.
Any number of missing teeth can cause serious oral and overall health issues. Ultimately, tooth loss begets more tooth loss. So, if you have just one missing tooth, it's very likely that more will follow if it isn't replaced.
For instance, your gum tissues could be cut to provide easy access to the whole tooth. In some cases, the bone could be removed. It is also important to note that accidents might occur during the tooth extraction procedure. This can result in cases of trauma not only to your gums but the rest of your mouth.
What is the most difficult tooth to extract? Impacted wisdom teeth are wisdom teeth that have failed to erupt properly. They are generally considered to be the most difficult teeth to extract. The higher the degree of impaction, the more difficult the extraction.
The procedure for extracting multiple teeth at once is a bit more complicated than a simple single tooth extraction. You can live without one or two teeth without major consequences, but losing several teeth at once requires the jawbone to be reshaped to prepare for a dental bridge or dentures.
Stage IV: Involvement of the pulp
Stage IV is serious, and a root canal is the only treatment at this point, saving a complete extraction.
If it is a permanent tooth that falls out by accident, don't panic right away. As long as the root/s are still intact, the tooth can be replanted back to its socket. To ensure that the tooth is still viable for replantation, follow these tips: Contact your dentist right away and tell them what happened.
So as not to leave your missing tooth socket exposed for months, your dentist may recommend a temporary dental bridge to cover the tooth gap as you wait for your permanent dental implants. The dental bridge, although temporary, will help you improve your smile as you wait for the implant fitting process to finish.
What happens if a tooth root is left in the gum? If a root remains in the gum, it may become infected. Over time, this may develop into an abscess. This is a potentially life-threatening complication with the potential to damage your jawbone, making it difficult to get a tooth implant later.
However, in most cases, a dentist will recommend waiting 3 to 6 months after a tooth extraction to allow the area to fully heal.
Whether or not you've stayed a long time after having your teeth extracted is not a reason not to undergo dental implants. So it doesn't matter the number of years you've spent; 3, 5, 10 or any number of years past, you can still get your dental implant surgery.
The good news is that you could still be a candidate years after having a tooth extracted. However, delaying dental implant placement does have consequences. Beyond six months, you will start to experience bone loss in the extraction area. Your surrounding teeth may begin to drift into the gap left behind.
A flipper tooth is a removable, lightweight partial denture that is often used as a temporary replacement for one or more missing teeth. Many patients opt for it as it fills in any visible gaps so you don't have to go without a tooth while waiting for your tooth implant.
It is preferable to preserve your teeth rather than remove them. This is because natural teeth function better than artificial ones. Additionally, removing your teeth leads to other problems like bone deterioration. Teeth crowns are better than extractions because they preserve the root of the teeth.
According to the American Association of Endodontists, patients who choose root canal treatment are six times more likely to describe it as painless than patients who opt for tooth extraction.
If I don't want a tooth removed, what else can be done? Two procedures that are commonly used as alternatives to tooth extraction are root canal and apicoectomy. While these procedures are similar, and both attack the cause that seems to warrant tooth extraction, a root canal is by far the more common.