Jonesborough, Jefferson City, and Greeneville, TN
Whether lost by an accident or extraction, a missing tooth should be replaced as soon as possible, before it begins to impact how you look, eat and speak and before it can negatively impact your oral health. Let’s dig a little deeper with our cosmetic dentist in Erwin at reasons to promptly replace a missing tooth.
Appearance
Teeth are small but have a big job. In addition to being the beginning of the digestive tract, responsible for chewing and grinding food, they also stimulate the jawbone, keeping it strong and healthy. When a tooth is missing, that area of the jawbone isn’t stimulated, and the body begins to reabsorb the bone that is going unused. This process, known as resorption, can weaken the jaw over time and alter the shape of your face.
Speech
Another job for teeth is to aid in speech. Gaps in a smile can make certain sounds much more difficult to pronounce, making you feel self-conscious in conversations and social interactions.
Teeth shifting
When a smile has a gap in it, other surrounding teeth begin to shift to fill the empty space. Over time, this can lead to misalignment, bite problems and further tooth loss by putting added pressure and wear on the teeth that remain.
How do I replace a missing tooth?
There are a few treatments that our Jonesborough cosmetic dentist offers that can replace missing teeth.
- Dental implants — Dental implants are a permanent solution, replacing a missing tooth using a surgically inserted post, a connecting abutment and a crown that looks, feels and functions just like a natural tooth.
- Bridges — Bridges are fixed tooth replacement options that fill gaps in the smile left by a missing tooth and anchor it to neighboring teeth.
- Dentures — Dentures are a removable, cost-effective option for replacing multiple missing teeth.
Tooth replacement in Erwin, Jonesborough and Greeneville, Tennessee
If you’re missing a tooth, ignoring it will only lead to bigger problems down the road. Act now by contacting us at Tusculum Dental Care, (423) 639-7575, or reaching out to us online today.