Consequences of failing to replace a missing tooth 

  • When you have missing teeth, this can lead to jaw bone loss at the gap’s location. When you have a tooth missing, the gap where the bone was once located does not receive the stimulation it once did and this encourages a process called resorption.
  • When there is a vacant gap in your mouth, your remaining teeth will begin to drift towards the gap, making it difficult to chew food correctly as well as causing potential speech problems. In addition, a drifting tooth can also cause tooth roots to destabilise which, in the worst case scenario, can lead to total loss of your tooth.
  • Your facial features can become altered when you loose a tooth as teeth are a huge part of how your facial structure is upheld. If you fail to replace a missing tooth, overtime this will worsen.
  • Missing teeth can be the cause chronic headaches. You may have been suffering from pain when you had a diseased tooth removed and believe that the pain would stop once this was removed. However, leaving a gap in your teeth can cause headaches, as the remaining teeth have no opposite teeth to bite against. The remaining teeth have no opposite teeth to bite against/rest on. Your remaining teeth are at risk of erupting and inflicting damage to the opposing gum. This can cause further complications with your jaw point (otherwise known as your temper mandibular joint).
  • Nutrition and digestion problems – If you cannot break down foods correctly, this will mean your body does not absorb the nutrients correctly. Many people with more than a single missing tooth opt with softer foods and therefore limit their diets to certain food groups.
  • Sinus expansion – When teeth are lost from the back of your upper jaw, your sinus cavity will begin to expand and erode your jaw bone.

 

 

If you would like to talk about replacing a missing tooth, please do not hesitate to contact us and we can arrange a consultation for you.