What Should I Do About Missing Teeth?

Missing teeth don’t just make you feel uncomfortable when you smile — they present some considerable risks to your oral health. The longer you go without replacing them, the more likely you are to develop gum disease, experience bone loss, and encounter other issues.

But there is more than one solution to missing teeth, and deciding which one is best for you can be overwhelming. Understanding the basics of each of these solutions and why replacing missing teeth is necessary can help you choose the option that is best for you to restore your smile.

What Happens When You Have Missing Teeth?

When one or more teeth go missing, it can have a significant impact on your self-esteem, and can also cause a variety of other issues, such as:

Difficulty Eating and Speaking

With a gap in your mouth, you’ll have to change the way you chew food, which can make eating more difficult and uncomfortable. You may also have trouble enunciating certain words, reducing your ability to communicate effectively.

Greater Potential for Oral Health Issues With Missing Teeth

Your exposed gums will be more susceptible to gum disease. If gum disease goes untreated, it can lead to a variety of oral health issues, including loose teeth, tooth loss, dental abscesses, and other problems.

Advanced gum disease has also been connected to a variety of serious health complications, including diabetes, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s.

Bone Loss

You need your teeth to stimulate bone growth in your jaw. Missing teeth can therefore lead to a slow but steady decline in bone density, which can cause a change in the shape of your face that leaves you looking more aged than you actually are.

Ways to Address Missing Teeth

Because of their negative effects on your oral and potentially even overall health, it is best to replace your missing teeth as soon as possible. Your options for tooth replacement typically include:

Dental Implants

A popular form of tooth replacement involves the fusion of a titanium post to your jawbone, which is used to support a natural-looking prosthetic tooth. Because of the integration with the jawbone, dental implants offer much more support and strength than other tooth replacement options.

Mini Dental Implants

If you’re looking for a less invasive procedure, then mini dental implants may be a better solution. This tooth replacement option is essentially the same as a dental implant, only with a much smaller implant that does not require as much bone density.

Implant-Supported Dentures to Replace Missing Teeth

Replacing a whole row of teeth at once can seem daunting, but with implant-supported dentures, getting your smile back is much easier than you might think. With the help of six strategically-placed dental implants, you can fix a denture to your mouth to give you the support you need to eat, speak, and smile with confidence.

Tooth Replacement Has Never Been Easier

Diana Rodriguez & Associates can renew your smile and your self-confidence after you’ve lost teeth. If you walk into our office with a missing tooth, you will leave with a new one — even our temporary replacement teeth immediately restore function. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation.