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| Agnes Kumar, DDS |
Replacing a missing tooth is important to the overall health
of your mouth, because a cascade of undesirable events occurs once a tooth is
lost. Teeth are held in a specific
position in your mouth due to pressure from adjacent teeth, opposing teeth, the
tongue, and cheeks. Once a back tooth is
lost, the adjacent and opposing teeth no longer have the same support. This leads to drifting and tilting of adjacent
teeth into the space as well as over-eruption (as if the tooth keeps growing)
of the opposing tooth. The over-eruption
leads to unevenness among the teeth, which in turn leads to trapping of debris
despite one’s best effort at brushing and flossing. The tilting and drifting of
adjacent teeth cause gum pocket formation, which are abnormal narrow clefts
between the gum and tooth root. Once gum
pockets get above 4mm, they are almost impossible to keep clean. Unclean teeth usually cause inflammation of
the surrounding gums and the teeth decay more readily. The ultimate effect is
decay as well as periodontal disease leading to further tooth loss. Replacing a missing tooth keeps the teeth in
place and therefore is a great step to keeping your mouth healthy and beautiful
for a lifetime.
Further reading: Implants
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