If you have recently lost a tooth, you know how quickly your quality of life can diminish. Certain activities you once took for granted can become far more difficult. You may avoid favorite foods that now threaten to harm the open gap in your smile. Because we use our teeth to help articulate speech, your voice may sound strange. Without replacement, neighboring teeth can drift toward the socket, worsening your alignment. This increases your risk for tooth decay and gum disease, further compromising your oral health. In fact, gum disease is the leading cause of missing teeth today, meaning one lost tooth can increase the odds of losing a second, third, or more. Fortunately, we can create a prosthodontic replacement tooth to secure your smile. A dental implant mimics the function of your tooth’s root to hold a crown secure between existing teeth.
At your Katy, TX, dental office, we create replacement teeth to help you restore your smile after losing a tooth. Dental implants require dense jaws to hold them tightly. This unique option helps your bone maintain that density by returning stimulation from your bite. While a bridge or denture can mimic a tooth above the gumline, they cannot return bone stimulation on their own.
Protecting Your Smile From Losing Additional Teeth
The conditions that contribute to tooth loss vary. While certain events like physical accidents may be completely unpredictable, certain behaviors you can control can mitigate your chance of losing a tooth. Poor oral hygiene can cause decay that wears away at your healthy tooth material. When it becomes too severe to treat with a filling or dental crown, we will suggest extracting the tooth to prevent decay from spreading to other members of your smile. By attending regular cleanings and exams, you can prevent decay from getting out of hand.
Gum disease is the primary cause of tooth loss today. If you receive a gum infection, we must get it under control before providing any prosthetic restorations. Periodontal maintenance therapy can place the disease in remission, allowing your symptoms to subside.
Placing Your Dental Implant
Taking an X-ray of your jaw helps us determine if it is healthy enough for a dental implant. Moving forward, we insert a titanium post directly through the open socket into your bone. As your body heals over the coming months, the oral tissues fuse with the post, holding it securely for a lifetime. We then place a dental crown that mimics a natural tooth above your gumline.
Talk To Your Katy, TX, Dentist About Your Options For Replacing Missing Teeth!
If you have recently lost one of your teeth, please let us know so we can help restore your smile! Talk to our team about how a dental implant can help by calling us at Lathrop Dental Center in Katy, TX at (832) 437-3849!
