Pasadena, Texas Dental Implant Dentistry

Cosmetics and Appearance:

Let’s face it. People are judged by their looks. Having missing teeth conveys negative social stereotypes. Not only are teeth necessary for a nice smile, teeth and their supporting bone helps support facial contours. Missing teeth can cause the cheeks to collapse causing wrinkles and a premature elderly appearance.

Teeth Shifting:

Teeth work as a team to distribute the forces of chewing. Also, teeth like to have neighbors top and bottom, front and back. When a tooth is lost the surrounding teeth will start to migrate. They are moving to find the missing tooth. The surrounding teeth collapse into the missing space. This causes major problems. The teeth are hard to clean because of the shifting. The teeth movement can cause chewing and jaw joint (TMJ) movement.

Single Tooth Missing – Consequences of Non-Treatment

Several Teeth Missing – Consequences of Non-Treatment

Tooth Loss and Bone Degeneration

Oddly, one of the main causes of tooth loss… is tooth loss to begin with! A missing tooth causes the remaining teeth to shift and become out of alignment.  This misalignment makes it easier to get decay. Also, more chewing forces are placed on the remaining teeth causing severe overload. This can lead to teeth fracturing.

Missing teeth cause loss of bone. When you eat the chewing forces are transmitted down the tooth into the bone. This stimulates and maintains a healthy bone density and volume. When a tooth is lost the old cliché of “if you don’t use it, you lose it” takes place. The jaw bone starts to deteriorate. If you are missing multiple teeth the problem is compounded. Loss of jaw bone (from missing teeth) creates a gaunt elderly appearance. The chin moves closer to the nose and a “witch’s chin”.

All Teeth Missing – Consequences of Non-Treatment

The Beauty of Dental Implants:

The beauty of dental implants is that they can conservatively eliminate all the problems of missing teeth. They do not damage adjacent teeth like old fashioned dental options (bridges, partial dentures). The implants stimulate and maintain bone levels. Dental implants can be utilized to replace one or several teeth. Furthermore, implants can be used for dental implant dentures or fixed (does not come out) solutions, like the All on Four protocol, for patients missing all of their teeth.