What to Do When You Lose a Tooth Due to Oral Injury

At Hawaii Pacific Dental Group, Inc., we emphasize the importance of replacing missing teeth through advanced restorative dentistry treatments as soon as possible to all of our patients, including those who are in excellent oral health. The unfortunate truth is that no one is immune to tooth loss, even patients who brush and floss properly and visit the dentist twice a year as advised by the American Dental Association. Oral injury resulting in tooth loss can occur to anyone at any time.

As unfair as such a turn of events may be, modern restorative dentistry offers the potential for patients to restore full health, function, and aesthetics to their mouth after tooth loss caused by oral injury. However, timing is of the essence when it comes to replacing missing teeth after an oral injury. While it is never too late to replace missing teeth, doing so immediately after an oral injury can help to prevent further damage to the mouth that would require even more extensive procedures to address. In discussing tooth loss and oral injury during consultations at his Honolulu, HI dental practice, Dr. Rohinton Patel stresses how important it is not to postpone treatment.

If you have lost one or more of your natural teeth due to oral injury, we urge you to schedule your initial consultation with Dr. Patel at Hawaii Pacific Dental Group today.

Your Body’s Reaction to Tooth Loss

Many people believe that tooth loss is primarily a cosmetic problem or, at worse, a problem that will affect a person’s ability to chew and speak. While tooth loss can cause aesthetic and functional issues, the resulting oral health issues are of far greater concern in the long term. This is because the body interprets tooth loss as a sign that the soft and hard tissues that once provided support to a missing tooth - namely, the gums and the jawbone - are no longer performing a vital role and therefore do not require any of the body’s essential resources. Due to the lack of these resources, these tissues begin to degrade, which affects the structural integrity of the entire mouth and face.

As this occurs, the teeth adjacent to the gap once occupied by a missing tooth will start to move toward that space. This movement will throw off the alignment of the teeth and the overall bite. It may also contribute to problems with the temporomandibular joints, or TMJs.

Fortunately, replacing the missing tooth can halt most or all of these adverse processes, depending on the method of tooth replacement chosen. The premier method of replacing missing teeth is dental implants. Dental implants are titanium posts that replicate tooth roots, providing outstanding support for crown, a bridges, or dentures. They are surgically embedded into the jaw, where they integrate with the bone tissue, essentially becoming part of the patient’s natural anatomy. Because the body cannot distinguish between titanium and a natural tooth root, dental implants halt the degradation process that begins when a tooth is lost.

Learn More about Tooth Loss and Oral Injury

To learn more about tooth loss and oral injury, please contact Hawaii Pacific Dental Group today.