The Reality of Missing Teeth

Teeth can be lost due to numerous reasons like- caries, periodontal infections, trauma/injury & congenital abnormalities. Missing teeth not only lead to embarrassment, but also devastates the functionality & esthetic quality.

Teeth help in stimulation of bone, but when bone losses teeth, lack of stimulation lead to decrease in density & also affects the height & width of bone overtime i.e. leads to bone deterioration & eventually distortion of facial features.

Also, when a person loses tooth, the adjacent teeth begin to drift towards the space of missing tooth. This somewhere affects the chewing efficiency by misaligning the bite & causes the opposing tooth to over-erupt.

Teeth play a significant role in stimulation of bone & its development by preserving the density, strength & shape.  Complete teeth loss leads to complete bone loss steadily overtime.

During the first year of tooth loss, there is 25% decrease in bone width. Also with loss of bone height & width, soft tissues decrease gradually. In lower jaw, we often notice when bone recedes, the tongue seems to be enlarged to accommodate the space which was previously occupied by teeth.

The facial features appear to be sunken, i.e. the loss of teeth makes you look much older than you actually are.

Therefore, this implies that teeth play a major role in our life not only physically but also psychologically.

Now, the crux of the matter is the solution to the problem.

Patients with no teeth often opt for removable, complete, or fixed partial dentures. But to add on to the patient’s information, dentures lead to bone loss during this entire time span.

Patients with dentures are not aware of the consequences of wearing dentures. The bone underneath lacks stimulation & continue to recede.

The only perennial treatment available to prevent bone loss & collapsing of facial structures are dental implants. The titanium screws are inserted within the jawbone which acts just like the root of teeth & re-stimulate the bone.

Dental implant maintains functionality & esthetics by preserving jawbone. The treatment also helps people look younger & full of life i.e. improves the quality of life.

The right decisions at the right time won’t let you suffer for the rest of your life.