Why Is It Important to Restore Missing Teeth?
Restoring missing teeth is essential to your oral health. Failing to replace a missing tooth can lead to several issues that can cause pain and further dental damage.
The roots of your teeth support and anchor the jawbone. Without teeth, the jawbone will eventually start to recede. The result is bone loss around teeth/roots adjacent to the missing teeth or an overall reduction in jawbone density in fully edentulous patients. As the bone recedes, it can make the face look shrunken, enhance wrinkles, and make a person look older than their years.
When you lose bone around the adjacent teeth, cleaning the gum pockets and root surfaces that might become exposed can be challenging. This creates a vicious cycle in which gum disease creates even deeper pockets and results in more gum and bone recession. Eventually, you can end up with loose teeth and need more extractions down the road. You’re also at increased risk for dental decay.
Another issue is malocclusion. The teeth naturally shift to fill in empty spaces. The shift can change your bite, causing some teeth to experience more bite pressure than others. Over time, the excess pressure can lead to cracked or broken teeth. Another side effect of malocclusion is damage to the jaw joints and muscle tension, which can make chewing difficult and lead to chronic headaches and migraines.
