We now have many options to restore teeth which were lost due to various unreparable dental problems or the teeth which were congenitally missing. However, many people would choose to do nothing to restore them. If the missing teeth are not restored in time, there could be many severe cosmetic, dental and medical consequences, and they are:
- If the front teeth are missing, a person’s appearance can be severely affected. The unsightly gaps can profoundly affect a person’s psychie.
- The bone which were once supporting the teeth will be shrinking. The bone will no longer receive mechanical stimulation from the teeth. These stimulation from teeth helps promote natural remodeling of the bone. Without these stimulation, the bone remodeling would be affected and thus the bone will become atrophy or shrink in volume.
- With the shrinkage of supporting bone, the lips and cheek would appear sunken in.
- The teeth which directly opposes to the missing teeth would extrude out of the supporting bone. For example, if there is missing teeth on the lower jaw, the upper teeth directly above empty space would extrude downward. Eventually, the upper teeth would extrude out of the upper alveolar bone and the teeth would be lost.
- Also the upper teeth would hit the gum in the empty space. These would create chewing problem.
- The adjacent teeth near the missing teeth would receive excessive pressure from a person’s chewing movement, and this would cause increase in risk of tooth fracture.
- The adjacent teeth would collapse into the empty space and this exacerbate the already compromised bite. Eventually, the person would have difficulty in chewing because teeth adjacent to the missing teeth would become misaligned.
- Due to bone shrinkage, the person would have new risk for jaw fracture.
Written by Daniel Tee, DDS, MS
General Dentist Office in Tempe AZ
Serving the city of Tempe, Chandler, Phoenix, Gilbert, and Mesa in Arizona. Practicing General Dentist
