You might think that when you’re dealing with tooth loss, you have all the time in the world to make up your mind about tooth replacement options. You might even convince yourself that missing teeth is purely an esthetic issue that has nothing to do with your oral health, so the idea of replacing your teeth makes you feel guilty. Here’s what you need to know: It’s actually extremely important that you replace those teeth. Allow us to explain more about the decisions you make and the results you can expect.
Decisions and Results: Missing Teeth
Decision: You decide to do nothing about your tooth loss.
Result: Perhaps you have decided to simply ignore the fact that you are missing a tooth or multiple teeth. This can become problematic for multiple reasons. First, hygiene can become less effective (because it’s more challenging to keep your smile clean). Missing teeth can also lead to loss of jawbone tissue (and subsequently, poor jawbone health) as well as the shifting of your teeth out of alignment. The remaining teeth will naturally begin to move into the open areas.
Decision: You decide you should probably do something but you decide to just think about it.
Result: It’s best to make choices quickly because some of the aforementioned side effects of tooth loss may begin happening almost immediately.
Decision: You decide to replace your teeth immediately.
Result: The best result you can expect after tooth loss is choosing tooth replacement right away. If you choose implants, you can protect your jaw health. If you choose any prosthetic whatsoever, you can expect teeth that remain in their proper alignment and you don’t need to worry about problematic hygiene, chewing, speaking, or otherwise.
