3 Common Causes of Tooth Loss

If you have missing teeth, you are familiar with the debilitating side effects they can bring. They will hinder your ability to chew and speak normally and disrupt the appearance of your smile. Your dentist can use restorative dental solutions to replace missing teeth. But ideally, you should preserve your natural smile as much as you can.

You can prevent tooth loss by understanding the dental conditions that may cause this damage to your smile. Read to learn about three of the most common reasons you may lose one or more of your teeth.

treat and replace missing teeth

What Dental Issues Could Make My Teeth Fall Out?

Advanced Periodontitis

Gum disease, an infection of the gum tissue, affects about half of American adults. The advanced stage of this disease, periodontitis, is also the leading cause of tooth loss in adult dental patients. If you suffer from periodontitis and want to know how we diagnose and treat it, see Periodontal Therapy.

What begins as an inflammation of the gums progresses to affect the teeth and jawbone. Bacteria will eat away at these parts of the mouth, and the resulting damage may cause the teeth to fall out.

You will need intervention from a dentist to eradicate this infection. The dentist will thoroughly clean your teeth, especially deep in the gum pockets, to get rid of the excess bacteria. They may also give you an antibacterial rinse to balance the natural bacteria in the mouth to keep further infections at bay.

Dentists recommend preventative care when it comes to gum health. So make sure you practice good oral hygiene so that plaque and bacteria will not spread and infect your gum tissue.

Severe Tooth Decay

Most people will develop a cavity at some point in their lives. A dentist can treat this early form of tooth decay within one appointment using a dental filling.

But if you do not seek treatment for a cavity promptly, the decay will spread deeper into the tooth. It can reach the root of the tooth and cause enough structural damage that it will fall out of its socket.

Your dentist can treat advanced tooth decay before tooth loss occurs by drilling it away as they would a cavity. They will cover the tooth after this procedure using a dental crown. The cap will restore the shape of the tooth and protect it from further harm.

Acute Facial Trauma

Despite all precautionary oral health measures, accidents can occur. For instance, a blow to the face may generate a high amount of pressure that could cause a healthy tooth to fall out.

This dental injury does not necessarily need to result in permanent tooth loss, though. Call your dentist as soon as you can after this accident to receive urgent care and potential replacement of the tooth back into its socket.

The dentist will likely ask you to come to their office for an emergency appointment. Bring your tooth with you, handling it carefully by the crown rather than the root. This way, you will not damage delicate nerves in the tooth.

If possible, gently place the tooth back in the socket to preserve it. You can store it in a container submerged in your saliva if this is not feasible.