A missing tooth is not your fault, but you can expect to experience some changes.
Teeth will drift into the missing space
Bone loss of the jaw
In the 1st year alone there is
25% LOSS OF BONE WIDTH
4mm LOSS OF BONE HEIGHT
Total of 42%
A removable denture does not stimulate and maintain bone; rather it ACCELERATES IT!
Almost every women past the age of 14 years is aware of osteoporosis after menopause. Diet and exercise are encouraged over their lifetime to decrease this risk. Yet osteoporosis primarily affects bone density, not bone volume. The only place in the body where bone volume is lost to an extreme is in the jaws after tooth loss. It is malpractice if a dentist does not monitor bone loss around teeth by the millimetre with a probe. Yet the centimetre bone loss after tooth removal are often ignored.
Progressive tooth loss
With a missing tooth on one side, the bite no longer functions correctly. So you start to eat more on the other side. This puts more pressure on the jaw joints, which can lead to constant headaches, ear pain and jaw pain. Since most of the chewing is now being done on the other side, gradually more teeth start to give in and more teeth get taken out. It creates a domino effect of tooth removal.
The progressive tooth and resultant bone loss, means not only do you now have to avoid eating certain foods such as raw vegetables & steak, but you're left with a weakened jaw bone and a rapidly ageing appearance of the face and lips as they lose fullness, muscle tone and wrinkle formation around the mouth potentiates.
Bite force is decreased from 200psi to 50psi
Premature ageing
Tooth loss accelerates the ageing appearance of the face by 10yrs
Creates an 'unhappy face'
Reduced lip support
Increased wrinkles around the lips
Collapsed face appearance
'Witches face'= chin points upward and nose points downward
Treatment Options
A is the most affordable option and will prevent adjacent teeth from tipping by holding the space, but it does not stimulate and maintain bone; rather it ACCELERATES IT! Therefore the denture needs a reline every 4-5yrs so as to replace the missing bone.
A is the quickest way to replace a missing tooth. Since it is fixed, it feels and looks like a natural tooth. It also helps maintain the bite. However, it too, does not stimulate and maintain bone and therefore continued bone loss in the jaw results and thus after 3-5yrs a gap develops under the bridge where food gets stuck and starts to create complications to the adjacent teeth.
A is often not the cheapest option and the price is often the only disadvantage. They are the only way to stimulate and preserve bone in the area of the missing tooth. The bite is best protected from damaging forces, as they look, feel and function like natural teeth and are easy to keep clean. The cascade of changes to the facial appearance and jaws do not develop as bone and bite are stimulated like natural teeth.
There are 3 options to replace a missing tooth: a removable denture (plate), a fixed bridge or an implant.
